MAURINE  L.  SCOTT 
2208  N.  Ross  Street 
Santa  Ana, Calif. 


THE  CASTLE  OF  S.  ANGELO. 


Historical  Tales 

The  Romance  of  Reality 


Boman 


By 

CHARLES   MORRIS 

AUTHOR   OF 

**  HALF-HOUR*  WITH  THE  BEST 
AMERICAN  AUTHORS,"  "  TALI8 
FROM  THE  DRAMATISTS,"  ZTC. 


J.    B.    LIPPINCOTT    COMPANY 

PHILADELPHIA   AND    LONDON 


Copyright,  I&A  by  J.  B.  LlPPINCOTT  COMPANY. 
Copyright,   1904,  by  J.   B.   LlPPINCOTT  COMPANY. 


SRLI 


CONTENTS. 


PAOB 

How  ROME  WAS  FOUNDED 7 

THE  SABINE  VIRGINS 14 

THE  HORATII  AND  CTTRIATII 22 

THE  DYNASTY  OF  THE  TARQUINS 26 

THE  BOOKS  or  THE  SIBYL 82 

THE  STORY  OF  LTTCRETIA 36 

How  BRAVE  HORATITTS  KEPT  THE  BRIDGE 43 

THE  BATTLE  OF  LAKE  BEGILLTTS 50 

THE  REVOLT  OF  THE  PEOPLE 54 

THE  REVENGE  OF  CORIOLANUS 60 

ClNCINNATUS  AND  THE  ^EQUIANS 68 

THE  SACRIFICE  OF  VIRGINIA 75 

CAMILLTTS  AT  THE  SIEGE  OF  VEII 87 

THE  GAULS  AT  ROME 94 

THE  CURTIAN  GULF 105 

ANECDOTES  OF  THE  LATIN  AND  SAMNITE  WARS     .   .   .  108 

THE  CAUDINE  FORKS 116 

THE  FATE  OF  REGULUS 126 

HANNIBAL  CROSSES  THE  ALPS 135 

How  HANNIBAL  FOUGHT  AND  DIED 145 

ARCHIMEDES  AT  THE  SIEGE  OF  SYRACUSE 152 

THE  FATE  OF  CARTHAGE 158 

THE  GRACCHI  AND  THEIR  FALL 165 

JUGURTHA,  THE  PURCHASER  OF  ROME 173 

THE  EXILE  AND  REVENGE  OF  MARIUS 180 

THE  PROSCRIPTION  OF  SULLA 191 

THE  REVOLT  OF  THE  GLADIATORS 198 

CJSSAR  AND  THE  PIRATES 204 

8 


4  CONTENTS. 

TABU 

CJCSAR  AND  POMPEY 208 

THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  CAESAR 218 

ANTONY  AND  CLEOPATRA 227 

AN  IMPERIAL  MONSTER 236 

THE  MURDER  OF  AN  EMPRESS 243 

BOADICEA,  THE  HEROINE  OF  BRITAIN 250 

ROME  SWKPT  BY  FLAMES 255 

THE  DOOM  OF  NERO 262 

THE  SPORTS  OF  THE  AMPHITHEATRE 272 

THE  REIGN  OF  A  GLUTTON 280 

THE  FAITHFUL  EPONINA 289 

THE  SIEGE  OF  JERUSALEM 293 

THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  POMPEII 301 

AN  IMPERIAL  SAVAGE 309 

THE  DEEDS  OF  CONSTANTINE , 319 

THE  GOTHS  CROSS  THE  DANUBE ....  825 

THE  DOWNFALL  OF  ROME 331 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


ROMAN. 

PAGE 

THE  CASTLE  OF  S.  ANQELO Frontispiece. 

THE  FORUM  OF  HOME 26 

BRUTUS  ORDERING  THE  EXECUTION  OF  HIS  SONS    .   .  40 

THE  SACRIFICE  OF  VIRGINIA 75 

RUINS  OF  THE  KOMAN  AQUEDUCTS 106 

THE  BATHS  OF  CARACALLA 150 

THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  CAESAR 218 

THE  GALLEY  OF  CLEOPATRA 230 

THE  TOMB  OF  HADRIAN 260 

A  ROMAN  CHARIOT  RACE 275 

THE  RUINS  OF  POMPEII 306 

EQUESTRIAN  STATUE  OF  MARCUS  AURELIUS 309 

THE  LAST  COMBAT  OF  THE  GLADIATORS    ,       ....  333 


HOW  ROME    WAS   FOUNDED. 

VERY  far  back  in  time,  more  than  twenty-six  hun« 
dred  years  ago,  on  the  banks  of  a  small  Italian  river, 
known  as  the  Tiber,  were  laid  the  foundations  of  a 
city  which  was  in  time  to  become  the  conqueror  of 
the  civilized  world.  Of  the  early  days  of  this  re- 
nowned city  of  Rome  we  know  very  little.  What  is 
called  its  history  is  really  only  legend, — stories  in- 
vented by  poets,  or  ancient  facts  which  became  grad- 
ually changed  into  romances.  The  Romans  believed 
them,  but  that  is  no  reason  why  we  should.  They 
believed  many  things  which  we  doubt.  And  yet 
these  romantic  stories  are  the  only  existing  founda- 
tion-stones of  actual  Roman  history,  and  we  can  do 
no  better  than  give  them  for  what  little  kernel  of  fact 
they  may  contain. 

In  our  tales  from  Greek  history  it  has  been  told 
how  the  city  of  Troy  was  destroyed,  and  how  JSneas, 
one  of  its  warrior  chiefs,  escaped.  After  many  ad- 
ventures this  fugitive  Trojan  prince  reached  Italy 
and  founded  there  a  new  kingdom.  His  son  Ascanius 
afterwards  built  the  city  of  Alba  Longa  (the  long 
white  city)  not  far  from  the  site  of  the  later  city  of 
Rome.  Three  hundred  years  passed  away,  many 
kings  came  and  went,  and  then  Numitor,  a  descend- 

7 


8  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ant  of  ^Eneas,  came  to  the  throne.  But  Numitor 
had  an  ambitious  brother,  Amulius,  who  robbed  him 
of  his  crown,  and,  while  letting  him  live,  killed 
his  only  son  and  shut  up  his  daughter  Silvia  in  the 
temple  of  the  goddess  Vesta,  to  guard  the  ever- 
burning fire  of  that  deity. 

Here  Silvia  had  twin  sons,  whose  father  was  said, 
in  the  old  superstitious  fashion,  to  be  Mars,  the  God 
of  War.  The  usurper,  fearing  that  these  sons  of 
Mars  might  grow  up  and  deprive  him  of  his  throne, 
ordered  that  they  and  their  mother  should  be  flung 
into  the  Tiber,  then  swollen  with  recent  rains.  The 
mother  was  drowned,  but  destiny,  or  Mars,  preserved 
the  sons.  Borne  onward  in  their  basket  cradle,  they 
were  at  length  swept  ashore  where  the  river  had 
overflown  its  banks  at  the  foot  of  the  afterwards 
famous  Palatine  Hill.  Here  the  cradle  was  over- 
turned near  the  roots  of  a  wild  fig-tree,  and  the 
infants  left  at  the  edge  of  the  shallow  waters. 

What  follows  sounds  still  more  like  fable.  A  she- 
wolf  that  came  to  the  water  to  drink  chanced  to  see 
the  helpless  children,  and  carried  them  to  her  cave, 
where  she  fed  them  with  her  milk.  As  they  grew 
older  a  woodpecker  brought  them  food,  flying  in  and 
out  of  the  cave.  At  length  Faustulus,  a  herdsman 
of  the  king,  found  these  lusty  infants  in  the  wolf's 
den,  took  them  home,  and  gave  them  to  his  wife 
Laurentia  to  bring  up  with  her  own  children.  He 
gave  them  the  names  of  Romulus  and  Remus. 

Tears  went  by,  and  the  river  waifs  grew  to  be 
strong,  handsome,  and  brave  young  men.  They  be- 
came leaders  among  the  shepherds  and  herdsmen, 


HOW   ROME   WAS   POUNDED.  9 

and  helped  them  to  fight  the  wild  animals  that 
troubled  their  flocks.  Their  home  was  on  the  Pala- 
tine Hill,  and  the  cattle  and  sheep  for  which  they 
cared  were  those  of  the  wicked  king  Amulius. 
Near  by  was  another  hill,  called  the  Aventine,  and 
on  this  the  deposed  king  Numitor  fed  his  flocks.  In 
course  of  time  a  quarrel  arose  between  the  herdsmen 
on  the  two  hills,  and  Numitor' s  men,  having  laid  an 
ambush,  took  Eemus  prisoner  and  carried  him  to  Alba, 
where  their  master  dwelt.  This  no  sooner  became 
known  to  Romulus  than  he  gathered  the  young  men 
of  the  Palatine  Hill,  and  set  out  in  all  haste  to  the 
rescue  of  his  brother. 

Meanwhile,  Remus  had  been  taken  before  Numitor, 
who  gazed  on  him  with  surprise.  His  face  and  bear- 
ing were  rather  those  of  a  prince  than  of  a  shepherd, 
and  there  was  something  in  his  aspect  familiar  to  the 
old  king.  Numitor  questioned  him  closely,  and  Re- 
mus told  him  the  story  of  the  river,  the  wolf,  and 
the  herdsman.  Numitor  listened  intently.  The  story 
took  him  back  to  the  day,  many  years  before,  when 
his  daughter  Silvia  and  her  twin  sons  had  been 
thrown  into  the  swollen  stream.  Could  the  children 
have  escaped?  Could  this  handsome  youth  be  his 
grandson  ?  It  must  be  so,  for  his  age  and  his  story 
agreed. 

But  while  they  talked,  Romulus  and  his  followers 
reached  the  city,  and,  being  forbidden  entrance,  made 
an  assault  on  the  gates.  In  the  conflict  that  ensued 
Amulius  took  part  and  was  killed,  and  thus  Numitor 
and  his  daughter  were  at  last  revenged.  Seeking 
Remus,  the  victorious  shepherd  prince  found  him 


10  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

with  Numitor,  who  now  fully  recognized  in  the  twin 
youths  his  long-lost  grandsons.  Romulus,  who  was 
now  master  of  the  city,  restored  his  royal  grand- 
father to  the  throne. 

As  for  Romulus  and  Remus,  their  life  as  shep- 
herds was  at  an  end.  It  was  not  for  youths  of  royal 
blood  and  warlike  aspirations  to  spend  their  lives  in 
keeping  sheep.  But  Numitor  had  been  restored  to 
the  throne  of  Alba,  and  they  decided  to  build  a  city 
of  their  own  on  those  hills  where  all  their  lives  had 
been  passed  and  on  which  they  preferred  to  dwell. 
The  land  belonged  to  Numitor,  but  he  willingly 
granted  it  to  them,  and  they  led  their  followers  to 
the  spot. 

Here  a  dispute  arose  between  the  brothers.  The 
story  goes  that  Romulus  wished  to  have  the  city 
built  on  the  Palatine  Hill,  Remus  on  the  Aventine 
Hill ;  and  that,  as  they  could  not  agree,  they  referred 
the  matter  to  their  grandfather,  who  advised  them  to 
settle  it  by  augury, — or  by  watching  and  forming 
conclusions  from  the  flight  of  birds.  This  long  con- 
tinued the  favorite  Roman  mode  of  settling  difficult 
questions.  It  was  easier  than  the  Greek  plan  of 
going  to  Delphi  to  consult  the  oracle. 

The  two  brothers  now  stationed  themselves  on  the 
opposite  hills,  each  with  a  portion  of  their  followers, 
and  waited  patiently  for  what  the  heavens  might 
send.  The  day  slowly  waned,  and  they  waited  in 
vain.  Night  came  and  deepened,  and  still  their  vigil 
lasted.  At  length,  just  as  the  sun  of  a  new  day  rose 
in  the  east,  Remus  saw  a  flight  of  vultures,  six  in 
all.  He  exulted  at  the  sight,  for  the  vulture,  as  a 


HOW   ROME   WAS   FOUNDED.  11 

bird  which  was  seldom  seen  and  did  no  harm  to 
cattle  or  crops,  was  looked  upon  as  an  excellent 
augury.  Word  of  his  success  was  sent  to  Eomulus, 
but  he  capped  the  story  with  a  better  one,  saying 
that  twelve  vultures  had  just  passed  over  his  hill. 

The  dispute  was  still  open.  Eemus  had  seen  the 
birds  first ;  Eomulus  had  seen  the  most.  Which  had 
won  ?  The  question  was  offered  to  the  decision  of 
their  followers,  the  majority  of  whom  raised  their 
voices  in  favor  of  Eomulus.  The  Palatine  Hill  was 
therefore  chosen  as  the  city's  site.  This  event  took 
place,  so  Eoman  chronology  tells  us,  in  the  year 
753  B.C. 

The  day  fixed  for  the  beginning  of  the  work  on 
the  new  city — the  21st  of  April — was  a  day  of  re- 
ligious ceremony  and  festival  among  the  shepherds. 
On  this  day  they  offered  sacrifices  of  cakes  and  milk 
to  their  god  Pales,  asked  for  blessings  on  the  flocks 
and  herds,  and  implored  pardon  for  all  offences 
against  the  dryads  of  the  woods,  the  nymphs  of  the 
streams,  and  other  deities.  They  purified  themselves 
by  flame  and  their  flocks  by  smoke,  and  afterwards 
indulged  in  rustic  feasts  and  games.  This  day  of 
religious  consecration  was  deemed  by  Eomulus  the 
fittest  one  for  the  important  ceremony  of  founding 
his  projected  city. 

Far  back  in  time  as  it  was  when  this  took  place, 
Italy  seems  to  have  already  possessed  numerous 
cities,  many  of  which  were  to  become  enemies  of 
Eome  in  later  days.  The  most  civilized  of  the 
Italian  peoples  were  the  Etruscans,  a  nation  dwell- 
ing north  of  the  Tiber,  and  whose  many  cities  dis- 


12  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

played  a  higher  degree  of  civilization  than  those 
around  them.  From  these  the  Eomans  in  later  days 
borrowed  many  of  their  religious  customs,  and  to 
them  Komulus  sent  to  learn  what  were  the  proper 
ceremonies  to  use  in  founding  a  city. 

The  ceremonies  he  used  were  the  following.  At 
the  centre  of  the  chosen  area  he  dug  a  circular  pit 
through  the  soil  to  the  hard  clay  beneath,  and  cast 
into  this,  with  solemn  observances,  some  of  the  first 
fruits  of  the  season.  Each  of  his  men  also  threw 
in  a  handful  of  earth  brought  from  his  native  land. 
Then  the  pit  was  filled  up,  an  altar  erected  upon  it, 
and  a  fire  kindled  on  the  altar.  In  this  way  was 
the  city  consecrated  to  the  gods. 

Then,  having  harnessed  a  cow  and  a  bull  of  snow- 
white  color  to  a  plough  whose  share  was  made  of 
brass,  Romulus  ploughed  a  furrow  along  the  line  of 
the  future  walls.  He  took  care  that  the  earth  of  the 
furrow  should  fall  inward  towards  the  city,  and  also 
to  lift  the  plough  and  carry  it  over  the  places  where 
gates  were  to  be  made.  As  he  ploughed  he  uttered 
a  prayer  to  Jupiter,  Mars,  Vesta,  and  other  deities, 
invoking  their  favor,  and  praying  that  the  new  city 
should  long  endure  and  become  an  all-ruling  power 
upon  the  earth. 

The  Eomans  tell  us  that  his  prayer  was  answered 
by  Jupiter,  who  sent  thunder  from  one  side  of  the 
heavens  and  lightning  from  the  other.  These  omens 
encouraged  the  people,  who  went  cheerfully  to  the 
work  of  building  the  walls.  But  the  consecration 
of  the  city  was  not  yet  completed.  Its  walls  were 
to  be  cemented  by  noble  blood.  There  is  reason  to 


HOW   ROME   WAS   POUNDED.  13 

believe  that  in  those  days  the  line  of  a  city's  walls 
was  held  as  sacred,  and  that  it  was  desecration  to 
enter  the  enclosure  at  any  place  except  those  left 
for  the  gates.  This  may  be  the  reason  that  Romulus 
gave  orders  to  a  man  named  Celer,  who  had  charge 
of  the  building  of  the  walls,  not  to  let  any  one  pass 
over  the  furrow  made  by  the  plough.  However  this 
be,  the  story  goes  that  Remus,  who  was  still  angry 
about  his  brother's  victory,  leaped  scornfully  over 
the  furrow,  exclaiming,  "  Shall  such  defences  as  these 
keep  your  city  ?" 

Celer,  who  stood  by,  stirred  to  sudden  fury  by  this 
disdain,  raised  the  spade  with  which  he  had  been 
working,  and  struck  Remus  a  blow  that  laid  him 
dead  upon  the  ground.  Then,  fearing  vengeance  for 
his  hasty  act,  he  rushed  away  with  such  speed  that 
his  name  has  since  been  a  synonyme  for  quickness. 
Our  word  "  celerity"  is  derived  from  it.  But  Romu- 
lus seems  to  have  borne  the  infliction  with  much  of 
that  spirit  of  fortitude  which  distinguished  the  Ro- 
mans in  after-times.  At  least,  the  only  effect  the 
death  of  his  brother  had  upon  him,  so  far  as  we 
know,  was  in  the  remark,  "  So  let  it  happen  to  all 
who  pass  over  my  walls !"  Thus  were  consecrated 
iu  the  blood  of  a  brother  the  walls  of  that  city  which 
in  later  years  was  to  be  bathed  in  the  blood  of  the 
brotherhood  of  mankind,  and  from  which  was  des- 
tined to  outflow  a  torrent  of  desolation  over  the 
earth. 


THE  SABINE   VIRGINS. 


A  TRACT  of  ground  surrounded  by  walls  does  not 
make  a  city.  Men  are  wanted,  and  of  these  the  new 
city  of  Borne  had  but  few.  The  band  of  shepherds 
who  were  sufficient  to  build  a  wall,  or  perhaps  only 
a  wooden  palisade,  were  not  enough  to  inhabit  a  city 
and  defend  it  from  its  foes.  The  neighboring  people 
had  cities  of  their  own,  except  bandits  and  fugitives, 
men  who  had  shed  blood,  exiles  driven  from  their 
homes  by  their  enemies,  or  slaves  who  had  fled  from 
their  lords  and  masters.  These  were  the  only  people 
to  be  had,  and  Eomulus  invited  them  in  by  pro- 
claiming that  his  city  should  be  an  asylum  for  all 
who  were  oppressed,  a  place  of  refuge  to  which  any 
man  might  flee  and  be  safe  from  his  pursuers.  He 
erected  a  temple  to  a  god  named  Asylseus, — from 
whom  comes  the  word  asylum, — and  in  this  he  "  re- 
ceived and  protected  all,  delivering  none  back, 
neither  the  servant  to  his  master,  the  debtor  to  his 
creditor,  nor  the  murderer  into  the  hands  of  the 
magistrate,  saying  that  it  was  a  privileged  place, 
and  they  could  so  maintain  it  by  an  order  of  the 
holy  oracle,  insomuch  that  the  city  grew  presently 
very  populous." 

It  was  a  quick  and  easy  way  of  peopling  a  city. 
14 


THE   SABINE   VIRGINS.  15 

Doubtless  the  country  held  many  such  fugitives,-^ 
men  lurking  in  woods  or  caves,  hiding  in  mountain 
clefts,  abiding  wherever  a  place  of  safety  offered, — 
hundreds  of  whom,  no  doubt,  were  glad  to  find  a 
shelter  among  men  and  behind  walls  of  defence. 
But  it  was  probably  a  sorry  population,  made  up  of 
the  waifs  of  mankind,  many  of  whom  had  been 
slaves  or  murderers.  There  were  certainly  no 
women  among  this  desperate  horde,  and  Bomulus 
appealed  in  vain  to  the  neighboring  cities  to  let  his 
people  obtain  wives  from  among  their  maidens.  It 
was  not  safe  for  the  citizens  of  Rome  to  go  abroad 
to  seek  wives  for  themselves ;  the  surrounding 
peoples  rejected  the  appeal  of  Romulus  with  scorn 
and  disdain;  unless  something  was  done  Rome  bade 
fair  to  remain  a  city  of  bachelors. 

In  this  dilemma  Romulus  conceived  a  plan  to  win 
wives  for  his  people.  He  sent  word  abroad  that  he 
had  discovered  the  altar  of  the  god  Consus,  who 
presided  over  secret  counsels,  and  he  invited  the 
citizens  of  the  neighboring  towns  to  come  to  Rome 
and  take  part  in  a  feast  with  which  he  proposed  to 
celebrate  the  festal  day  of  the  deity.  This  was  the 
21st  of  August,  just  four  months  after  the  founding 
of  the  city, — that  is,  if  it  was  the  same  year. 

There  were  to  be  sacrifices  to  Consus,  where  liba- 
tions would  be  poured  into  the  flames  that  consumed 
the  victims.  These  would  be  followed  by  horse-  and 
chariot-races,  banquets,  and  other  festivities.  The 
promise  of  merry-making  brought  numerous  spec- 
tators from  the  nearer  cities,  some  doubtless  drawn 
by  curiosity  to  see  what  sort  of  a  commonwealth 


16  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

this  was  that  had  grown  up  so  suddenly  on  the  sheep 
pastures  of  the  Palatine  Hill ;  and  they  found  their 
wives  and  daughters  as  curious  and  eager  for  enjoy- 
ment as  themselves,  and  brought  them  along,  ig- 
noring the  scorn  with  which  they  had  lately  rejected 
the  Roman  proposals  for  wives.  It  was  a  religious 
festival,  and  therefore  safe;  so  visitors  came  from 
the  cities  of  Coenina,  Crustumerium,  and  Antemna, 
and  a  multitude  from  the  neighboring  country  of 
the  Sabines. 

The  sacrifices  over,  the  games  began.  The  visit- 
ors, excited  by  the  races,  became  scattered  about 
among  the  Romans.  But  as  the  chariots,  drawn  by 
flying  horses,  sped  swiftly  over  the  ground,  and  the 
eyes  of  the  visitors  followed  them  in  their  flight, 
Romulus  gave  a  preconcerted  signal,  and  immedi- 
ately each  Roman  seized  a  maiden  whom  he  had 
managed  to  get  near  and  carried  her  struggling  and 
screaming  from  the  ground.  As  they  did  so,  each 
called  out  "  Talasia,"  a  word  which  means  spinning, 
and  which  afterwards  became  the  refrain  of  a  Roman 
marriage  song. 

The  games  at  once  broke  up  in  rage  and  confusion. 
But  the  visitors  were  unarmed  and  helpless.  Their 
anger  could  be  displayed  only  in  words,  and  Romu- 
lus told  them  boldly  that  they  owed  their  misfortune 
to  their  pride.  But  all  would  go  well  with  their 
daughters,  he  said,  since  their  new  husbands  would 
take  the  place  with  them  of  home  and  family. 

This  reasoning  failed  to  satisfy  the  fathers  who 
had  been  robbed  so  violently  of  their  daughters,  and 
they  had  no  sooner  reached  home  than  many  of 


THE  SABINE  VfRGUNS.  17 

them  seized  their  armg  and  marched  against  their 
faithless  hosts.  First  came  the  people  of  Coenina ; 
but  the  Romans  defeated  them,  and  Romulus  killed 
their  king.  Then  came  the  people  of  Crustumerium 
and  Antemna,  but  they  too  were  defeated.  The  pris- 
oners were  taken  into  Rome  and  made  citizens  of 
the  new  commonwealth. 

But  it  was  the  Sabines  who  had  most  to  deplore, 
for  they  had  come  in  much  the  greatest  number,  and 
it  was  principally  the  Sabine  virgins  whom  the  Ro- 
mans had  borne  off  from  the  games.  Titus  Tatius, 
the  king  of  the  Sabines,  therefore  resolved  upon  a 
signal  revenge,  and  took  time  to  gather  a  large  army, 
with  which  he  marched  against  Rome. 

The  war  that  followed  was  marked  by  two  ro- 
mantic incidents.  Near  the  Tiber  is  a  hill, — after- 
wards known  as  the  Capitoline  Hill, — which  was 
divided  from  the  Palatine  Hill  by  a  low  and  swampy 
valley.  On  this  hill  Romulus  had  built  a  fortress, 
as  it  sort  of  outwork  of  his  new  city.  It  happened 
that  Tarpeius,  the  chief  who  held  this  fortress,  had 
a  daughter  named  Tarpeia,  who  was  deeply  affected 
by  that  love  of  finery  which  has  caused  abundant 
mischief  since  her  day.  When  she  saw  the  golden 
collars  and  bracelets  which  many  of  the  Sabines 
wore,  her  soul  was  filled  with  longing,  and  she  man- 
aged to  let  them  know  that  she  would  betray  the 
fortress  into  their  hands  if  they  would  give  her  the 
bright  things  which  they  wore  upon  their  arms. 

They  consented,  and  she  secretly  opened  to  them 
a  gate  of  the  fortress.  But  as  they  marched  through 
the  gate,  and  the  traitress  waited  to  receive  her  re- 
ii — b  2* 


18  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ward,  the  Sabine  soldiers  threw  on  her  the  bright 
shields  which  they  wore  on  their  arms,  and  she  was 
crushed  to  death  beneath  their  weight.  The  steep 
rock  of  the  Capitoline  Hill  from  which  traitors  were 
afterwards  thrown  was  called,  after  her,  the  Tar- 
peian  Eock. 

The  fortress  thus  captured,  the  valley  between  the 
hill  and  the  city  became  the  scene  of  battle.  Here 
the  Sabines  repulsed  the  Eomans,  driving  them  back 
to  one  of  their  gates,  through  which  the  fugitives 
rushed  in  confusion,  shutting  it  hastily  behind  them. 
But — if  we  may  trust  the  legend — the  gate  refused 
to  stay  shut.  It  opened  again  of  its  own  accord. 
They  closed  it  twice  more,  and  twice  more  it  swung 
open.  The  victorious  Sabines,  who  had  now  reached 
it,  began  to  rush  in ;  but  just  then,  from  the  Temple 
of  Janus,  near  by,  there  burst  forth  a  might}'  stream 
of  water,  which  swept  the  Sabines  away  and  saved 
Rome  from  capture.  Therefore,  in  after-days,  the 
gates  of  the  Temple  of  Janus  stood  always  wide 
open  in  time  of  war,  that  the  god  might  go  out,  if 
he  would,  to  fight  for  the  Romans. 

Another  battle  took  place  in  the  valley,  and  the 
Romans  again  began  to  flee.  Romulus  now  prayed 
to  Jupiter,  and  vowed  to  erect  to  him  a  temple  as 
Jupiter  Stator, — that  is,  the  "  stayer," — if  he  would 
stay  the  Romans  in  their  flight.  Jupiter  did  so,  or, 
at  any  rate,  the  Romans  turned  again  to  the  fight, 
which  now  waxed  furious.  What  would  have  been 
its  result  we  cannot  tell,  for  it  was  brought  to  an 
end  by  the  other  romantic  incident  of  which  we  have 
spoken. 


THE   SABINB   VIRGINS.  19 

In  fact,  while  the  fathers  of  the  Sabine  virgins  re- 
tained their  anger  against  the  Eomans,  the  virgins 
themselves,  who  had  now  long  been  brides,  had  be- 
come comforted,  most  of  them  being  as  attached  to 
their  husbands  as  they  had  been  to  their  parents 
before;  and  in  the  midst  of  the  furious  battle  be- 
tween their  nearest  relatives  the  lately  abducted 
damsels  were  seen  rushing  down  the  Palatine  Hill, 
and  forcing  their  way,  with  appealing  eyes  and  dis- 
hevelled hair,  in  between  the  combatants. 

"  Make  us  not  twice  captives  I"  they  earnestly  ex- 
claimed, saying  pathetically  that  if  the  war  went  on 
they  would  be  widowed  or  fatherless,  both  of  which 
sad  alternatives  they  deplored. 

The  result  of  this  appeal  was  a  happy  one.  Both 
sides  let  fall  their  arms,  and  peace  was  declared 
upon  the  spot,  it  being  recognized  that  there  could 
be  no  closer  bond  of  unity  than  that  made  by  the 
daughters  of  the  Sabines  and  wives  of  the  Eomans. 
The  two  people  agreed  to  become  one,  the  Sabines 
making  their  new  home  on  the  Capitoline  and  Quiri- 
nal  Hills,  and  the  Romans  continuing  to  occupy  the 
Palatine.  As  for  the  women,  there  was  established 
in  their  honor  the  feast  called  Matronalia,  in  which 
husbands  gave  presents  to  their  wives  and  lovers  to 
their  betrothed.  Romulus  and  Tatius  were  to  rule 
jointly,  and  afterwards  the  king  of  Rome  should  be 
alternately  of  Roman  and  Sabine  birth. 

After  five  years  Tatius  was  killed  in  a  quarrel, 
and  Romulus  became  sole  king.  Under  him  Rome 
grew  rapidly.  He  was  successful  in  his  wars,  and 
enriched  his  people  with  the  spoils  of  his  enemies. 


20  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

In  rule  he  was  just  and  gentle,  and  punished  those 
guilty  of  crime  not  by  death,  but  by  fines  of  sheep 
or  oxen.  It  is  said,  though,  that  he  grew  somewhat 
arrogant,  and  was  accustomed  to  receive  his  people 
dressed  in  scarlet  and  lying  on  a  couch  of  state, 
where  he  was  surrounded  by  a  body  of  young  men 
called  Celeres,  from  the  speed  with  which  they  flew 
to  execute  his  orders. 

For  nearly  forty  years  his  reign  continued,  and 
then  his  end  came  strangely.  One  day  he  called 
the  people  together  in  the  Field  of  Mars.  But  sud- 
denly there  arose  a  frightful  storm,  with  such  ter- 
rible thunder  and  lightning  and  such  midnight  dark- 
ness that  the  people  fled  homeward  in  affright 
through  the  drenching  rain.  That  was  the  last  of 
Romulus.  He  was  never  seen  in  life  again.  He 
may  have  been  slain  by  enemies,  but  the  popular 
belief  was  that  Mars,  his  father,  had  carried  him  up 
to  heaven  in  his  chariot.  All  that  the  people  knew 
was  that  one  night,  when  Proculus  Julius,  a  friend 
of  the  king,  was  on  his  way  from  Alba  to  Rome,  he 
met  Romulus  by  the  way,  his  stature  beyond  that 
of  man,  and  his  face  showing  the  beauty  of  the  gods. 

Proculus  asked  him  why  he  had  left  the  people  to 
sorrow  and  wicked  surmises,  for  some  said  that  the 
senators  had  made  away  with  him.  Romulus  replied 
that  it  was  the  wish  of  the  gods  that,  after  building 
a  city  that  was  destined  to  the  greatest  empire  and 
glory,  he  should  go  to  heaven  and  dwell  with  the 
gods. 

"  Go  and  tell  my  people  that  they  must  not  weep 
for  me  any  more,"  he  said ;  "  but  bid  them  to  be 


THE   SABINE  VIRGINS.  21 

brave  and  warlike,  and  so  shall  they  make  my  city 
the  greatest  on  the  earth." 

This  story  satisfied  the  people  that  their  king  had 
been  made  a  god  ;  so  they  built  a  temple  to  him,  and 
always  afterwards  worshipped  him  under  the  name 
of  the  god  Quirinus.  A  festival  called  the  Quirinalia 
was  celebrated  each  year  on  the  17th  of  February, 
the  day  on  which  he  had  vanished  from  the  eyes  of 
men. 


THE  HO  RATH  AND   CURIATII. 


ROMULUS  was  succeeded  by  a  king  named  Numa 
Pompilius,  of  Sabine  origin,  who  so  loved  peace  that 
during  his  reign  Rome  had  no  wars  and  no  enemies, 
so  that  the  doors  of  the  Temple  of  Janus  were  never 
once  opened  while  he  was  on  the  throne.  He  built  a 
temple  to  Faith,  that  men  might  learn  to  avoid  false- 
hood and  to  act  honestly.  He  taught  the  people  to 
sacrifice  nothing  but  the  fruits  of  the  earth,  cakes  of 
flour,  and  roasted  corn,  and  to  shed  no  blood  upon 
the  altars.  And  so  Rome  was  peaceful  and  prosper- 
ous throughout  his  long  reign,  and  grew  rapidly  in 
wealth  and  population.  He  died  at  length  when 
eighty  years  of  age,  and  was  succeeded  by  Tullus 
Hostilius,  a  king  of  Roman  birth. 

The  new  king  loved  war  as  much  as  the  gentle 
Numa  had  loved  peace.  Under  his  rule  the  gates  of 
the  Temple  of  Janus  were  soon  thrown  open  again, 
long  to  remain  so.  His  first  war  was  with  the  city 
of  Alba  Longa,  the  foster-parent  of  Rome.  Some 
border  troubles  brought  on  hostilities,  war  broke  out, 
and  an  Alban  army  marched  until  within  fifteen 
miles  of  Rome.  And  here  took  place  a  celebrated 
incident.  The  two  armies  were  drawn  out  on  the 
,  and  were  about  to  plunge  into  the  dreadful  work 
22 


THE    HOEATII  AND   CURIATII.  28 

of  battle,  when  the  Alban  king,  to  whom  the  war 
seemed  a  foolish  and  useless  one,  stood  out  between 
the  two  armies  and  spoke  in  the  hearing  of  both. 

He  reminded  them  that  the  Eomans  and  Albans 
were  of  the  same  origin,  and  that  they  were  sur- 
rounded by  nations  who  would  like  to  see  both  of 
them  weakened.  He  proposed,  therefore,  that  the 
dispute  between  them  should  be  decided  not  by 
battle,  but  by  a  duel  between  a  few  soldiers,  and 
that  the  side  which  won  should  rule  the  other.  This 
proposal  seemed  to  Tullus  a  sensible  one,  and  he  ac- 
cepted it,  offering  as  the  combatants  on  his  side  three 
twin  brothers  known  as  the  Horatii. 

The  Alban  army  had  also  three  twin  brothers,  of 
about  the  same  age  as  the  Roman  champions,  known 
as  the  Curiatii,  and  these  were  chosen  to  uphold  the 
honor  and  dominion  of  Alba  against  Rome.  So,  with 
the  two  armies  as  spectators,  and  a  broad  space 
between  for  the  deadly  duel,  the  six  champions,  fully 
armed,  faced  each  other  in  the  field. 

The  onset  was  fierce,  and  set  every  heart  in  the 
two  armies  throbbing  in  hope  or  dread.  But  after  a 
short  time  a  shout  of  triumph  went  up  from  the 
Alban  host.  Two  of  the  Horatii  lay  stretched  in 
death  on  the  field.  The  Curiatii  were  all  wounded, 
but  they  were  now  three  to  one,  so  the  remaining 
Horatius  turned  and  fled,  though  he  was  still  unhurt. 
Dismay  fell  on  the  Romans  as  they  saw  their  single 
champion  in  full  flight,  pursued  by  his  opponents. 
The  glad  shouts  of  the  Albans  redoubled. 

Suddenly  a  change  came.  The  fugitive,  whosa 
flight  had  been  a  feint,  to  separate  his  foes,  now 


24  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

turned  and  saw  that  the  wounded  men  were  lagging 
in  pursuit  and  were  widely  separated.  Running 
quickly  back,  he  met  the  nearest,  and  killed  him 
with  a  blow.  The  other  two  were  met  and  slain  in 
succession  before  they  could  aid  each  other.  Then, 
holding  up  his  bloody  sword  in  triumph,  the  victor 
invited  the  plaudits  of  his  friends,  while  shedding 
dismay  on  Alban  hearts. 

The  Romans,  now  lords  of  the  Albans,  returned  to 
Rome  in  triumph,  their  advent  to  the  city  being 
marked  by  the  first  of  those  pompous  processions 
which  in  after-years  became  known  as  Roman 
Triumphs,  and  were  celebrated  with  the  utmost 
splendor  and  costliness  of  display. 

But  the  affair  of  the  Horatii  and  Curiatii  was  not 
yet  at  an  end.  It  was  to  be  finished  in  blood  and 
crime.  A  sister  of  the  Horatii  was  the  affianced 
bride  of  one  of  the  Curiatii,  and  as  she  saw  her 
victorious  brother  enter  the  city,  bearing  on  his 
shoulders  the  military  cloak  which  she  had,  wrought 
for  her  lover  with  her  own  hands,  she  broke  into 
wild  invectives,  tearing  her  hair,  and  upbraiding  her 
brother  with  bitter  words.  Roused  to  fury  by  this 
accusation,  the  victor,  in  a  paroxysm  of  rage,  struck 
his  sister  to  the  heart  with  the  sword  which  had 
slain  her  lover,  crying  out,  "  So  perish  the  Roman 
maiden  who  shall  weep  for  her  country's  enemy." 

This  dreadful  deed  filled  with  horror  the  hearts  of 
all  who  beheld  it.  Men  cried  that  it  was  a  crime 
against  the  law  and  the  gods,  too  great  to  be  atoned 
for  by  the  victor's  services.  He  was  seized  and 
dragged  to  the  tribunal  of  the  two  judges  who  dealt 


THE   HORATII   AND   CURIATII.  25 

with  crimes  of  bloodshed.  These  heard  the  evidence 
of  the  crime,  and  condemned  him  to  death,  in  despite 
of  what  he  had  done  for  Eome. 

But  the  Eoman  law  permitted  an  appeal  from  the 
judges  to  the  people.  This  appeal  Horatius  made, 
and  it  was  tried  before  the  assembly  of  Eomans. 
Here  his  father  spoke  in  his  favor,  saying  that  in  his 
opinion  the  maiden  deserved  her  fate.  Eemembrance 
of  the  great  service  performed  by  Horatius  was 
also  strong  with  the  people,  and  the  voice  of  the  as- 
sembly  freed  him  from  the  sentence  of  death.  But 
blood  had  been  shed,  and  blood  required  atonement, 
so  a  sum  of  money  was  set  aside  to  pay  for  sacrifices 
to  atone  for  this  dreadful  deed.  Ever  afterwards 
these  sacrifices  were  performed  by  members  of  the 
Horatian  clan. 

In  a  later  war  the  Albans  failed  to  aid  the  Eomans, 
as  they  were  required  to  do  by  the  terms  of  alliance. 
As  a  result  the  city  of  Alba  was  destroyed,  and  tht 
Albans  forced  to  come  and  live  in  Eome,  the  Cseliai, 
Hill  being  given  them  for  a  dwelling-place. 


THE  DYNASTY  OF  THE   TAR- 
QUINS. 

THE  tale  we  have  now  to  tell  forces  us  to  pass 
rapidly  over  years  of  history.  After  several  kings 
of  Roman  and  Sabine  birth  had  reigned,  a  foreigner, 
of  Greek  descent,  came  to  the  throne  of  Rome.  This 
was  one  Lucomo,  the  son  of  a  native  of  Corinth,  who 
had  settled  at  Tarquinii  in  Italy.  Growing  weary 
of  Tarquinii,  Lucomo  left  that  city,  with  his  family 
and  wealth,  and  made  his  way  to  Rome.  As  he 
came  near  the  gates  of  the  city  an  eagle  swooped 
down,  lifted  the  cap  from  his  head,  and,  bearing  it 
high  into  the  air,  descended  and  placed  it  on  his 
head  again.  His  wife  Tanaquil,  who  was  skilled  in 
augury,  told  him  this  was  a  happy  omen,  and  that 
he  was  destined  to  become  great. 

And  so  he  did.  His  riches,  courage,  and  wisdom 
brought  him  great  favor  in  Rome,  and  on  the  death 
of  their  king  Ancus  the  people  chose  Lucius  Tar- 
quinius — as  they  called  him,  from  his  native  city — to 
reign  over  them  in  his  stead.  He  proved  a  valiant 
and  successful  warrior,  and  in  times  of  peace  did 
noble  work.  He  built  great  sewers  to  drain  the  city, 
constructed  a  large  circus  or  race-course,  and  a 
forum  or  market-place,  and  built  a  wall  of  stone 
around  the  city  in  place  of  the  old  wooden  wall. 


THE  DYNASTY  OF  THE  TARQUINS.        27 

He  also  began  to  build  a  great  temple  on  the  Capi- 
toline  Hill,  which  was  designed  to  be  the  temple 
of  the  gods  of  Rome.  In  the  end  Lucius  was  mur- 
dered by  the  sons  of  King  Ancus,  who  declared  that 
he  had  robbed  them  of  the  throne. 

There  is  a  story  of  the  deed  of  an  augur  in  his 
reign  which  is  worth  repeating,  whether  we  believe 
it  or  not.  Lucius  had  little  trust  in  the  augur,  and 
said  to  him,  "  Come,  tell  me  by  your  auguries  whether 
the  thing  I  have  in  my  mind  may  be  done  or  not." 
"  It  may,"  said  Attus,  the  augur.  "  It  is  this,"  said 
the  king,  laughing:  "it  was  in  my  mind  that  you 
should  cut  this  whetstone  in  two  with  this  razor. 
Take  them  and  see  if  you  can  do  it." 

Attus  took  the  razor  and  whetstone,  and  with  a 
bold  stroke  cut  the  latter  in  two.  From  that  time 
on  Lucius  did  nothing  without  first  consulting  the 
augurs,  and  testing  the  purposes  of  the  gods  by  the 
flight  of  birds,  and — so  say  the  legends — he  pros- 
pered accordingly. 

The  cause  of  the  death  of  Lucius  was  this.  One 
day  a  boy  who  dwelt  in  the  palace  fell  asleep  in  its 
portico,  and  as  he  lay  there  some  attendants  who 
passed  by  saw  a  flame  playing  lambently  around  his 
head.  Alarmed  at  the  sight,  they  were  about  to 
throw  water  upon  him  to  extinguish  the  flame, 
when  Tanaquil,  the  queen,  who  had  also  seen  it,  for- 
bade them.  She  told  the  king  of  what  had  hap- 
pened, and  said  that  the  boy  whom  they  were  bring- 
ing up  so  meanly  was  destined  to  become  great  and 
noble.  She  bade  him,  therefore,  to  rear  the  child  ia 
a  way  befitting  his  destiny. 


28  HISTORICAL    TALES. 

The  boy,  whose  name  was  Servius  Tullius,  was 
thereupon  brought  up  as  a  prince,  and  when  old 
enough  married  the  king's  daughter.  Lucius  reigned 
forty  years,  and  then  the  sons  of  Ancus,  fearing  to 
be  robbed  of  their  claim  to  the  throne  by  young 
Servius,  who  had  become  very  popular,  managed  to 
get  an  audience  with  and  kill  the  king. 

The  murderers  gained  nothing  by  their  deed  of 
blood.  Queen  Tanaquil  shrewdly  told  the  people 
that  Lucius  was  only  stunned  by  the  blow,  and  that 
he  wished  them  to  obey  the  orders  of  Servius.  To 
the  young  man  she  said,  "  The  kingdom  is  yours ;  if 
you  have  no  plans  of  your  own,  then  follow  mine." 
For  several  days  Servius  acted  as  king,  and  then, 
the  people  and  senate  having  grown  used  to  seeing 
him  on  the  throne,  the  death  of  Lucius  was  declared 
and  Servius  proclaimed  king.  He  had  the  consent 
of  the  senate,  but  had  not  asked  that  of  the  people, 
being  the  first  king  of  Rome  who  reigned  without 
the  votes  of  the  assembly  of  the  Roman  people. 

Servius  Tullius  reigned  long  and  won  victories, 
but  his  greatest  triumphs  were  those  of  peace.  He 
formed  a  league  with  the  thirty  cities  of  Latium, 
and  is  said  to  have  taken  a  census  of  the  people  of 
the  city,  which  was  found  to  have  eighty -three  thou- 
sand inhabitants.  To  strengthen  his  power  he  mar- 
ried his  two  daughters  to  two  sons  of  Lucius  Tar- 
quinius,  a  well-intended  act  which  led  to  a  tragic 
and  dreadful  deed. 

The  daughters  of  Servius  were  very  unlike  in 
nature,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  their  hus- 
bands, and  they  became  unequally  mated.  Lucius 


THE  DYNASTY  OF  THE  TARQUIN8.        29 

Tarquinius  was  proud  and  full  of  evil,  while  his 
wife,  the  elder  Tullia,  was  good  and  gentle.  Aruns 
Tarquinius  was  of  a  mild  and  kindly  nature,  while 
his  wife,  the  younger  Tullia,  was  cruel  and  am- 
bitious. They  were  thus  sadly  mismated.  But  the 
evil  pair  saw  in  each  other  kindred  spirits,  and  in 
the  end  Lucius  secretly  killed  his  wife,  and  the 
younger  Tullia  her  husband.  The  wicked  pair  then 
married,  and  proceeded  to  carry  out  the  purposes  of 
their  base  hearts. 

Servius,  being  himself  of  humble  birth,  had  favored 
the  people  at  the  expense  of  the  nobles.  He  even 
made  a  law  that  no  king  should  rule  after  him,  but 
that  two  men  chosen  by  the  people  should  govern 
them  year  by  year.  Thus  it  was  that  the  commons 
came  to  love  him  and  the  nobles  to  hate  him,  and 
when  he  asked  for  a  vote  of  the  people  on  his  king- 
ship there  was  not  a  voice  raised  against  him. 

Lucius,  whom  his  wicked  wife  steadily  goaded  to 
ambitious  aims,  conspired  with  the  nobles  against 
the  king.  There  were  brotherhoods  of  the  young 
nobles,  pledged  to  support  each  other  in  deeds  of 
oppression.  These  he  joined,  and  gained  their  aid. 
Then  he  waited  till  the  harvest  season,  when  the 
commons  were  in  the  fields,  gathering  the  ripened 
corn. 

This  absence  of  the  king's  friends  gave  him  the 
opportunity  he  wished.  Gathering  a  band  of  armed 
men,  he  suddenly  entered  the  Forum,  and  took  his 
seat  on  the  king's  throne,  before  the  door  of  tbf 
senate-chamber,  from  which  Servius  was  accustomed 
to  judge  the  people.  Word  of  this  act  of  treasof 
3* 


30  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

was  borne  to  the  old  king,  who  at  once  hastened  to 
the  Forum  and  sternly  asked  the  usurper  why  he 
had  dared  to  take  that  seat. 

Lucius  insolently  answered  that  it  was  his  father's 
throne,  and  that  he  had  the  best  right  to  it.  Then, 
as  the  aged  and  unguarded  king  mounted  the  steps 
of  the  senate-house,  his  ambitious  son-in-law  sprang 
up,  caught  him  by  the  middle,  and  flung  him  head- 
long down  the  steps  to  the  ground.  Then  he  went 
into  the  senate-chamber  and  called  the  senators  to- 
gether, as  though  he  were  already  king. 

The  old  monarch,  sadly  shaken  by  his  fall,  rose  to 
his  feet  and  made  his  way  slowly  towards  his  home 
on  the  Esquiline  Hill.  But  when  he  came  near  it 
he  was  overtaken  by  some  bravos  whom  Lucius  had 
sent  in  pursuit.  These  killed  the  unprotected  old 
man,  and  left  him  lying  in  his  blood  in  the  middle 
of  the  street. 

And  now  was  done  a  deed  which  has  aroused  the 
execrations  of  mankind  in  all  later  ages.  Tullia,  who 
had  instigated  her  husband  to  the  murder  of  her 
father,  waited  with  impatience  until  it  was  per- 
formed. Then,  mounting  her  chariot,  she  bade  the 
coachman  to  drive  to  the  Forum,  where,  heedless  of 
the  crowd  of  men  who  had  assembled,  she  called 
Lucius  from  the  senate-house,  and  cried  to  him,  in 
accents  of  triumph,  "  Hail  to  thee,  King  Tarquinius!" 

Wicked  as  Lucius  was,  he  was  not  as  shameless 
as  his  wife,  and  sternly  bade  her  to  go  home.  She 
obeyed,  taking  the  same  street  as  her  father  had 
followed.  Soon  reaching  the  spot  where  the  bleed- 
ing body  of  the  old  king  lay  stretched  across  the 


THE  DYNASTY  OP  THE  TABQUINS.        31 

way,  the  coachman  drew  up  his  horses  and  pointed 
out  to  Tullia  the  dreadful  spectacle. 

"  Drive  on,"  she  harshly  commanded.  "  I  cannot." 
he  replied.  "  The  street  is  too  narrow  to  pass  with- 
out crushing  the  king's  body."  "  Drive  on,"  she 
again  fiercely  ordered,  and  the  coachman  did  so. 
Tullia  went  to  her  home  with  her  father's  blood 
upon  the  wheels  of  her  chariot,  and  with  the  exe- 
cration of  all  good  men  upon  her  head.  And  thus 
it  was  that  Lucius  Tarquinius  and  his  wicked  wife 
succeeded  the  good  king  Servius  upon  the  throne. 

We  may  tell  here  briefly  the  end  of  this  evil  pair. 
Tarquin  the  Proud,  as  he  is  known  in  history, 
reigned  as  a  tyrant  and  oppressor,  while  his  wife 
was  viewed  with  horror  by  all  virtuous  matrons. 
At  length  the  people  rose  against  a  base  deed  of  the 
tyrant's  son,  and  the  wicked  Tullia  fled  in  terror 
from  her  house.  No  one  sought  to  stop  her  in  her 
flight ;  but  all.  men  and  women  alike,  cursed  her  as 
she  passed,  and  prayed  that  the  furies  of  her  father's 
blood  might  take  revenge  for  her  dreadful  deed. 

She  never  saw  Eome  again.  Tarquin  sought  long 
to  regain  his  crown,  but  in  vain,  and  the  wicked 
usurpers  died  in  exile.  No  king  ever  again  ruled 
over  the  Eomans.  Tarquin's  tyranny  had  given  the 
people  enough  of  kings,  and  the  law  of  good  Servius 
Tullius  was  at  last  carried  out. 


THE  BOOKS   OF   THE  SIBYL. 

WHILE  Tarquin  the  Proud  was  king  a  strange 
thing  happened  at  Eome.  One  day  an  unknown 
woman  came  to  the  king,  bearing  in  her  arms  nine 
books,  which  she  offered  to  sell  to  him  at  a  certain 
price.  She  told  him  that  they  contained  the  prophe- 
cies of  the  Sibyl  of  Cumae,  and  that  from  them 
might  be  learned  the  destiny  of  Kome  and  the  way 
to  carry  out  this  destiny. 

But  the  price  she  asked  for  her  books  seemed  to 
the  king  exorbitant,  and  he  refused  to  buy  them, 
whereupon  the  woman  went  away  from  the  palace 
and  burned  three  of  the  volumes.  She  then  returned 
with  six  only  and  offered  them  to  the  king,  but 
demanded  the  same  price  for  the  six  as  she  had 
before  done  for  the  nine.  King  Tarquin  heard  this 
demand  with  laughter  and  mockery,  and  again 
refused  to  buy.  The  woman  once  more  left  the 
palace,  and  burned  three  more  of  the  books. 

To  the  king's  astonishment  his  strange  visitor 
soon  returned,  bearing  the  three  books  that  remained. 
On  being  asked  their  price,  she  named  the  same  sum 
as  she  had  demanded  for  the  six  and  the  nine.  This 
was  ceasing  to  be  matter  for  mockery.  There  might 
be  some  important  mystery  concealed  behind  this 
strange  demand.  The  king  sent  for  the  augurs  of 
32 


THE   BOOKS   OF   THE    SIBYL.  33 

the  court,  told  them  what  had  happened,  and  asked 
what  he  should  do.  They  told  him  that  he  had  done 
very  wrong.  In  refusing  the  books  he  had  refused 
a  gift  ot  the  gods.  By  all  means  he  must  buy  the 
books  that  were  left.  He  bought  them,  therefore, 
at  the  Sibyl's  price.  As  for  the  woman,  she  was 
never  seen  again. 

The  books  were  placed  in  a  chest  of  stone,  and 
kept  underground  in  the  great  temple  which  his 
father  had  begun  on  the  Capitoline  Hill,  and  which 
he  had  completed.  Two  men  were  appointed  to 
guard  them,  who  were  called  the  two  men  of  the 
sacred  books ;  and  no  treasure  could  have  been  kept 
with  more  care  and  devotion  than  these  mysterious 
rolls. 

The  temple  in  which  these  books  were  kept  was 
the  grandest  edifice  Kome  had  yet  known.  When 
Tarquin  proposed  to  build  it  he  found  the  chosen 
site  already  occupied  by  many  holy  places,  sacred  to 
the  gods  of  the  Sabines,  the  first  dwellers  on  the 
Capitoline  Hill.  The  augurs  consulted  the  gods  to 
see  if  these  holy  places  could  safely  be  removed,  to 
make  room  for  the  new  temple.  The  answer  came 
that  they  might  take  away  all  except  the  holy  places 
of  the  god  of  Youth  and  of  Terminus,  the  god  of 
boundaries.  This  was  accounted  a  happy  augury, 
for  it  seemed  to  mean  that  the  city  should  always 
retain  its  youth  and  that  no  enemy  should  remove 
its  boundaries.  And  when  the  foundations  of  the 
temple  were  dug  a  human  head  was  found,  which 
was  held  to  be  a  sign  that  the  Capitoline  Hill  should 
be  the  head  of  all  the  earth.  So  a  great  temple  was 

II. — C 


34  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

built,  and  consecrated  to  Jupiter  and  to  Juno  and  to 
Minerva,  the  greatest  of  the  Etruscan  gods.  This 
edifice,  afterwards  known  as  the  Capitol,  was  the 
most  sacred  and  revered  edifice  of  later  Eome. 

In  the  vaults  of  this  temple  the  sacred  books  of 
the  Sibyl  were  sedulously  kept,  and  here  they  were 
consulted  from  time  to  time,  as  occasions  arose  in  the 
history  of  the  city  when  divine  guidance  seemed 
necessary.  None  of  the  people  were  permitted  to 
gaze  within  the  sacred  cell  in  which  they  lay.  Only 
the  augurs  consulted  them,  and  the  word  of  the 
augurs  had  to  be  taken  for  what  they  revealed.  It 
may  be  that  the  augurs  themselves  invented  all  that 
they  told,  for  the  books  at  length  perished  in  the 
flames,  and  no  man  knows  what  secret  lore  they 
really  contained. 

It  was  during  the  wars  of  Sulla  and  Marius  (83  B.C.) 
that  this  disaster  occurred.  The  Capitol  was  burned, 
and  with  it  those  famous  oracles,  which  had  so  long 
directed  the  counsels  of  the  nation.  Their  loss 
threw  Eome  into  the  deepest  consternation,  the  loss 
of  the  Capitol  itself  seeming  small  beside  that  of 
these  famous  scrolls. 

To  replace  them  as  far  as  possible,  the  senate  sent 
embassadors  to  the  various  temples  of  Italy,  Greece, 
and  Asia  Minor,  within  which  were  Sibyls,  or  oracle- 
speaking  priestesses.  These  collected  such  oracles 
referring  to  Rome  as  they  could  find,  about  one 
thousand  lines  in  all,  and  brought  them  to  Rome, 
where  they  were  placed  in  the  same  locality  in  the 
new  Capitol  that  they  had  occupied  in  the  old. 

These  oracles  do  not  appear  to  have   predicted 


THE   BOOKS   OP  THE   SIBYL.  35 

future  events,  but  were  consulted  to  discover  the 
religious  observances  necessary  to  avert  great  calam- 
ities and  to  expiate  prodigies.  During  the  reign  of 
Augustus  they  were  removed  to  the  Temple  of  Apollo 
on  the  Palatine  Hill,  and  all  the  false  Sibylline  leaves 
which  were  extant  were  collected  and  burned.  They 
remained  here  until  shortly  after  the  year  400  A.D., 
when  they  were  publicly  burned  by  Stilicho,  a 
famous  general  of  Christian  Borne,  as  impious  docu- 
ments of  heathen  times. 


THE   STORY  OF  LUCRETIA. 

WE  have  next  to  tell  how  Tarquin  the  Proud  lost 
his  throne,  through  his  own  tyranny  and  the  crimi- 
nal action  of  his  son.  Once  upon  a  time,  when  this 
king  was  at  the  height  of  his  power,  he,  as  was 
usual,  offered  sacrifices  to  the  gods  on  the  altar  in 
the  palace  court-yard.  But  from  the  altar  there 
crawled  out  a  snake,  which  devoured  the  offerings 
before  the  flames  could  reach  them. 

This  was  an  alarming  omen.  The  augurs  were 
consulted,  but  none  of  them  could  explain  it.  So 
Tarquin  sent  two  of  his  sons  to  the  Temple  of 
Delphi,  in  Greece,  whose  oracle  was  famous  in  all 
lands,  to  ask  counsel  of  Apollo  concerning  this 
prodigy.  With  these  two  princes,  Titus  and  Aruns 
by  name,  went  their  cousin,  Lucius  Juuius,  a  youth 
who  seemed  so  lacking  in  wit  that  men  called  him 
Brutus, — that  is,  the  "  Dullard."  One  evidence  of 
his  lack  of  wit  was  that  he  would  eat  wild  figs  with 
honey.  Just  in  what  way  this  was  an  evidence  of 
want  of  good  sense  we  do  not  know,  though  doubt- 
less the  Romans  did. 

But  Brutus  was  by  no  means  the  fool  that  men 
fancied  him.  He  was  shrewd  instead  of  stupid. 
His  father  had  left  him  abundant  wealth,  to  which 
36 


THE   STORY   OP   LUCRETIA.  37 

his  uncle,  King  Tarquin,  might  at  any  time  take  a 
fancy,  and  sweep  him  away  to  enjoy  it.  The  king 
had  killed  his  brother  for  his  wealth,  and  would  bo 
likely  to  serve  him  in  the  same  way  if  he  deemed 
him  wise  enough  to  fight  for  his  inheritance.  So, 
preferring  life  to  money,  Brutus  feigned  to  be  want- 
ing in  sense. 

When  he  went  to  Delphi  he  took  with  him  a 
hollow  staff  of  horn,  which  he  had  filled  with  gold, 
and  offered  this  staff  to  the  oracle  as  a  likeness  of 
himself, — perhaps  as  one  empty  of  wit  and  whose 
whole  merit  lay  in  his  gold.  When  the  three  young 
men  had  performed  the  bidding  of  the  king,  and 
asked  the  oracle  the  meaning  of  the  prodigy,  they 
were  told  that  it  portended  the  fall  of  Tarquin. 
Then  they  said,  "  O  Lord  Apollo,  tell  us  which  of 
us  shall  be  king  of  Rome."  From  the  depth  of  the 
sanctuary  there  came  a  voice  in  reply,  "The  one 
among  you  who  shall  first  kiss  his  mother." 

This  was  one  of  those  enigmas  in  which  the 
Delphian  oracle  usually  spoke,  saying  things  with 
a  double  meaning,  and  which  men  were  apt  to  take 
amiss.  It  was  so  now.  The  two  princes  drew  lots 
which  of  them  should  first  kiss  their  mother  on  his 
return ;  and  they  agreed  to  keep  the  oracle  secret 
from  their  brother  Sextus,  lest  he  should  be  king 
rather  than  they.  But  Brutus  was  wiser  than  them 
both.  As  they  left  the  temple  together,  he  pretended 
to  stumble  and  fell  with  his  face  to  the  ground.  He 
then  kissed  the  earth,  saying,  "  The  earth  is  the  true 
mother  of  us  all." 

On  their  return  to  Rome  the  princes  found  that 
4 


38  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

their  father  was  at  war.  He  was  besieging  the  city 
of  Ardea,  which  lay  south  of  Rome ;  and  as  this  city 
was  strong  and  well  defended  the  king  and  his  army 
were  kept  a  long  while  before  it,  waiting  until  famine, 
their  ally,  should  force  the  inhabitants  to  surrender. 
While  the  army  was  thus  waiting  in  idleness  its  offi- 
cers had  leisure  for  feasts  and  diversions,  and  one  of 
the  king's  sons  found  time  to  indulge  in  fatal  mischief. 
This  arose  from  a  supper  in  the  tent  of  Prince  Sex- 
tus,  at  which  his  brothers  Titus  and  Aruns,  and  his 
cousin  Tarquin  of  Collatia,  were  present. 

While  they  feasted  a  dispute  arose  between  them, 
as  to  which  had  the  worthiest  wife.  It  ended  in  a 
proposition  of  Tarquin,  "  Let  us  go  and  see  with  our 
own  eyes  what  our  wives  are  doing,  and  we  can  then 
best  decide  which  is  the  worthiest."  This  propo- 
sition hit  with  their  humor,  and,  mounting  their 
horses,  they  rode  to  Rome.  Here  they  found  the 
wives  of  the  three  princes  merrily  engaged  at  a  ban- 
quet. They  then  rode  on  to  Collatia.  It  was  now 
late  at  night,  but  they  found  Lucretia,  the  wife  of 
their  cousin,  neither  sleeping  nor  feasting,  but  work- 
ing at  the  loom,  with  her  handmaids  busily  engaged 
around  her. 

On  seeing  this,  they  all  cried,  "  Lucretia  is  the 
worthiest  lady."  She  ceased  her  work  to  entertain 
them,  after  which  they  took  to  their  horses  again, 
and  rode  back  to  the  camp  before  Ardea. 

But  Sextus  was  seized  with  a  vile  passion  for  his 
cousin's  wife,  and  a  few  days  afterwards  went  alone 
to  Collatia,  where  Lucretia  received  him  with  much 
hospitality,  as  her  husband's  kinsman.  He  treated 


THE    STORY   OF    LUCRETIA.  39 

her  shamefully  in  return,  forcing  her,  with  wicked 
threats,  to  accept  him  as  her  lover  and  husband,  in 
defiance  of  the  laws  of  God  and  man. 

As  soon  as  Sextus  had  left  her  and  returned  to  the 
camp,  Lucretia  sent  to  Rome  for  her  father  and  to 
Ardea  for  her  husband.  Tarquin  brought  with  him 
his  cousin  Lucius  Juniusl  or  Brutus  the  Dullard. 
When  they  arrived  the  lady,  with  bitter  tears,  told 
them  of  the  wickedness  of  Sextus,  and  said,  "If 
you  are  men,  avenge  it!"  They  heard  her  tale  in 
horror,  and  swore  to  deeply  revenge  her  wrong. 

"  I  am  not  guilty,"  she  now  said ;  "  yet  I  too  must 
share  in  the  punishment  of  this  deed,  lest  any  should 
think  that  they  may  be  false  to  their  husbands  and 
live."  As  "she  spoke  she  drew  a  knife  from  her 
bosom  and  stabbed  herself  to  the  heart. 

As  they  saw  her  fall,  a  cry  of  horror  arose  from 
her  husband  and  father.  But  Brutus,  who  saw  that 
the  time  had  come  for  him  to  throw  off  his  pretence 
of  stupidity  and  act  the  man,  drew  the  knife  from 
the  bleeding  wound  and  held  it  up,  saying,  in  solemn 
accents,  "  By  this  blood,  I  swear  that  I  will  visit  this 
deed  upon  King  Tarquin  and  all  his  accursed  race! 
And  no  man  hereafter  shall  reign  as  king  in  Eome, 
lest  he  may  do  the  like  wickedness." 

He  then  handed  the  knife  to  the  others,  and  bade 
them  to  take  the  same  oath.  This  they  did,  wonder- 
ing at  the  sudden  transformation  in  Brutus.  They 
then  took  up  the  body  of  the  slain  woman  and  car- 
ried it  into  the  forum  of  the  town,  crying  to  the 
gathering  people,  "  Behold  the  deeds  of  the  wicked 
family  of  Tarquin,  the  tyrant  of  Rome!" 


40  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

The  people,  maddened  by  the  sight,  hastily  sought 
their  arms,  and  while  some  guarded  the  gates,  that 
none  might  carry  the  news  to  the  king,  the  others 
followed  Brutus  to  Rome.  Here  the  story  of  the 
wickedness  of  Sextus  and  the  self-sacrifice  of  Lu- 
crotia  ran  through  the  city  like  wildfire,  and  a  mul- 
titude gathered  in  the  Forum,  where  Brutus  ad- 
dressed them  in  fervent  words.  He  recalled  to 
them  all  the  tyranny  of  Tarquin  and  the  vices  of 
his  sons,  reminding  them  of  the  murder  of  Servius, 
the  impious  act  of  Tullia,  and  ending  with  an 
earnest  recital  of  the  wrongs  of  the  virtuous  Lucre- 
tia,  whose  bleeding  corpse  still  lay  in  evidence  in  the 
forum  of  Collatia. 

His  words  went  to  the  souls  of  his  hearers.  An 
assembly  of  the  people  being  quickly  called,  it  was 
voted  that  the  Tarquins  should  be  banished,  and  the 
office  of  king  should  be  forever  abolished  in  Rome. 
Tullia,  learning  of  the  cause  of  the  tumult,  hastily 
left  the  palace,  and  fled  from  Rome  in  her  chariot 
through  throngs  that  followed  her  with  threats  and 
curses.  Brutus,  perhaps  with  the  crimsoned  knife 
still  in  his  hand,  bade  the  young  men  to  follow  him, 
and  set  off  in  haste  to  Ardea,  to  spread  through  the 
army  the  story  of  the  deed  of  crime  and  blood. 

Meanwhile,  Tarquin  had  been  told  of  the  revolt, 
and  was  hurrying  to  Rome  to  put  it  down.  Brutus 
turned  aside  from  the  road  that  he  might  not  meet 
him,  and  hastened  on  to  the  camp,  where  the  story 
of  the  revolt  and  its  cause  was  told  the  soldiers. 
On  hearing  the  story  the  whole  army  broke  into  a 
tumult  of  indignation,  drove  the  king's  sons  from 


THE   STORY   OP   LUCRETIA.  41 

the  camp,  and  demanded  to  be  led  to  Eome.  The 
siege  of  Ardea  was  at  once  abandoned  and  the  back- 
ward march  began. 

Meanwhile,  Tarquin  had  reached  the  city,  but  only 
to  find  the  gates  closed  against  him  and  stern  men 
on  the  walls.  "  You  cannot  enter  here,"  they  cried. 
"  You  are  banished  from  Eome,  you  and  all  of  yours, 
and  shall  never  set  foot  within  its  walls  again.  And 
you  are  the  last  of  our  kings.  No  man  after  you 
shall  ever  call  himself  king  of  Eome." 

Just  in  what  threats,  promises,  and  persuasions 
Tarquin  indulged  we  do  not  know.  But  the  men  on 
the  walls  were  not  to  be  moved  by  threats  or  prom- 
ises, and  he  was  obliged  to  take  himself  away,  a 
crownless  wanderer.  As  for  Sextus,  to  whom  all 
the  trouble  was  due,  some  say  that  he  was  killed  in 
a  town  whose  people  he  had  betrayed,  while  others 
say  that  he  was  slain  in  battle  while  his  father  was 
fighting  to  regain  his  throne. 

But  this  is  certain,  no  king  ever  reigned  in  Eome 
again.  The  people,  talking  among  each  other,  said, 
"  Let  us  follow  the  wise  laws  of  good  King  Servius. 
He  bade  us  to  meet  in  our  centuries  (or  hundreds) 
and  to  choose  two  men  year  by  year  to  govern  us, 
instead  of  a  king.  This  let  us  do,  as  Servius  would 
have  done  himself  had  he  not  been  basely  mur- 
dered." 

So  the  centuries  of  the  people  met  in  the  Campus 
Martius  (Field  of  Mars),  and  there  chose  two  men, — 
Brutus,  the  leader  in  the  revolution,  and  Lucius  Tar- 
quin, the  husband  of  the  fated  Lucretia.  These  offi- 
cials were  afterwards  called  Consuls,  and  were  given 
4* 


42  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ruling  power  in  Eome.  But  they  had  to  lay  down 
their  office  at  the  end  of  the  year  and  be  succeeded  by 
two  others  elected  in  their  stead.  The  people,  how- 
ever, were  afraid  of  the  very  name  of  Tarquin,  and 
in  electing  Lucius  to  the  consulate  it  seemed  as  if 
they  had  put  a  new  Tarquin  on  the  throne.  So  they 
prayed  him  to  leave  the  city;  and,  taking  all  his 
goods,  he  went  away  and  settled  at  Lavinium,  a  new 
consul  being  elected  in  his  place.  A  law  was  now 
passed  that  all  the  house  of  the  Tarquins  should  be 
banished,  whether  they  were  of  the  king's  family  or 
not. 

Thus  ended  the  kingly  period  in  Eome,  after  six 
kings  had  followed  Eomulus.  With  the  consuls 
many  of  the  laws  of  King  Servius,  which  Tarquin 
had  set  aside,  were  restored,  and  a  much  greater 
degree  of  freedom  came  to  the  people  of  Eome. 
But  that  there  might  not  now  seem  to  be  two  kings 
instead  of  one,  it  was  decreed  that  only  one  of  the 
consuls  should  rule  at  a  time,  each  of  them  acting 
as  ruler  for  a  month,  and  then  giving  over  the  power 
to  his  associate. 


HOW  BRAVE  HORATIUS  KEPT 
THE  BRIDGE. 

THE  banished  King  Tarquin  did  not  lightly  yield 
his  realm.  He  roused  the  neighboring  cities  against 
Kome  and  fought  fiercely  for  his  throne.  Soon  after 
he  was  exiled  from  Rome  he  sent  messengers  there 
for  his  goods.  These  the  senate  decreed  should  be 
given  him.  But  his  messengers  had  more  secret 
work  to  do.  They  formed  a  plot  with  many  of  the 
young  nobles  to  bring  back  the  king,  and  among 
these  traitors  were  Titus  and  Tiberius,  the  sons  of 
Brutus. 

A  slave  overheard  the  conspirators  and  betrayed 
them  to  the  consuls,  and  they  were  seized  and 
brought  to  the  judgment-seat  in  the  Forum.  Here 
Brutus,  sitting  in  judgment,  beheld  his  two  sons 
among  the  culprits.  He  loved  them,  but  he  loved 
justice  more,  and  though  he  grieved  deeply  in- 
wardly, his  face  was  grave  and  stern  as  he  gave 
judgment  that  the  law  must  take  its  course.  So  the 
eons  of  this  stern  old  Roman  were  scourged  with 
rods  before  his  eyes,  and  then,  with  the  other  con- 
spirators, were  beheaded  by  the  lictors,  while  he 
looked  steadily  on,  never  turning  his  eyes  from  the 
dreadful  sight.  But  men  could  see  that  his  heart 
bled  for  his  sons. 

43 


44  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Soon  afterwards  Tarquin  led  an  army  of  Etrus- 
cans against  .Rome,  and  the  two  consuls  marched 
against  them  at  the  head  of  the  Koman  army.  In 
the  battle  that  followed  Brutus  met  Aruns,  the  king's 
son,  in  advance  of  the  lines  of  battle.  Aruns,  seeing 
Brutus  dressed  in  royal  robes  and  attended  by  the 
lictors  of  a  king,  was  filled  with  anger,  and  levelled 
his  spear  and  spurred  his  horse  against  him.  Brutus 
met  him  in  mid-career  with  levelled  spear.  Both 
were  run  through,  and  together  fell  dead  upon  the 
field. 

The  day  ended  with  neither  party  victors.  But 
during  the  night  a  woodland  deity  was  heard  speak- 
ing from  a  forest  near  by.  "One  man  more  has 
fallen  of  the  Etruscans  than  of  the  Romans,"  it  said  ; 
"  the  Romans  are  to  conquer."  This  strange  oracle 
ended  the  war.  It  was  a  reason,  surely,  for  which 
war  was  never  ended  before  or  since.  The  Etrus- 
cans, affrighted,  marched  hastily  home ;  while  the 
Romans  carried  home  their  slain  patriot,  for  whom 
their  women  mourned  a  whole  year,  in  honor  of  his 
noble  service  in  avenging  Lucretia. 

The  banished  king  still  craved  his  lost  kingdom, 
and  made  other  efforts  to  regain  it.  Having  failed 
in  his  first  attempt,  he  went  to  another  city,  named 
Clusium,  in  the  distant  part  of  Etruria,  and  here  be- 
sought Lars  Porsenna,  the  king  of  that  city,  to  aid 
him  recover  his  throne.  Lars  Porsenna,  -with  a 
fellow-feeling  for  his  dethroned  brother  king,  raised 
a  large  army  and  marched  with  Tarquin  and  his 
fellow-exiles  against  defiant  Rome. 

The  Romans  now  awaited  him  at  home,  and  the 


HOW    BRAVE    HORATIUS    KEPT   THE    BRIDGE.         45 

two  armies  met  on  the  hill  called  Janiculum,  beyond 
the  river  from  the  city.  Here  came  the  crash  of 
battle,  but  the  men  of  Clusium  proved  the  stronger, 
and  after  a  sharp  struggle  the  Romans  gave  way  and 
were  driven  pell-mell  down  the  hill  and  across  the 
bridge  which  spanned  the  Tiber  at  this  point.  This 
was  a  wooden  bridge  on  which  the  Romans  set  great 
store,  as  it  was  their  only  means  of  crossing  the 
stream.  But  it  now  was  likely  to  serve  as  a  means 
of  the  loss  of  their  city.  Their  flying  army  was 
pouring  in  panic  across  it,  with  the  Etruscans  in  hot 
pursuit,  seeking  strenuously  to  win  the  bridge. 

The  bridge  must  be  speedily  destroyed  or  the 
city  would  be  lost,  but  it  seemed  too  late  for  this ; 
unless  the  enemy  could  in  some  way  be  kept  back 
till  the  bridge  was  cut  down,  Tarquin  and  his  allies 
would  be  in  the  streets  of  Rome. 

At  this  juncture  a  brave  and  stalwart  son  of 
Rome,  Horatius  Codes  by  name,  stepped  forward 
and  offered  his  life  in  his  city's  defence.  "  Cut  away 
with  all  haste,"  he  said ;  "  I  will  keep  the  bridge 
until  it  falls."  Two  others,  Spurius  Lartius  and 
Titus  Herminius,  sprang  to  his  side,  and  the  three, 
fully  armed  and  stout  of  heart,  ranged  themselves 
across  the  narrow  causeway,  while  behind  them  the 
axes  of  the  Romans  played  ringingly  upon  the  sup- 
ports of  the  bridge. 

On  came  the  Etruscans  in  force.  But  the  bridge 
was  so  narrow  that  only  a  few  could  advance  at 
once,  and  these  found  in  the  way  the  sharp  spears 
and  keen-edged  blades  of  the  patriot  three.  Down 
went  the  leading  Etruscans,  and  others  pressed  on, 


46  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

only  to  fall,  till  the  defenders  of  the  bridge  had  a 
bulwark  of  the  slain  in  their  front. 

And  now  the  bridge  creaked  and  groaned  as  the 
axes  kept  up  their  lively  play,  the  ring  of  steel  find- 
ing its  chorus  in  the  cheering  shouts  of  the  Romans 
on  the  bank. 

"  Back !  back !"  cried  the  axemen.  "  It  will  be 
down  in  a  minute  more ;  back  for  jTour  lives !" 

"  Back!"  cried  Horatius  to  his  comrades,  and  they 
hastily  retreated ;  but  he  stood  unmoving,  still  boldly 
facing  the  foe. 

"  Fly !     It  is  about  to  fall !"  was  the  shout. 

"  Let  it,"  cried  Horatius,  without  yielding  a  step. 

And  there  he  stood  alone,  defying  the  whole  army 
of  the  Etruscans.  From  a  distance  they  showered 
their  javelins  on  him,  but  he  caught  them  on  his 
shield  and  stood  unhurt.  Furious  that  they  should 
be  kept  from  their  prey  by  a  single  man,  they 
gathered  to  rush  upon  him  and  drive  him  from  his 
post  by  main  force;  but  just  then  the  creaking 
beams  gave  way,  and  the  half  of  the  bridge  be- 
hind him  fell  with  a  mighty  crash  into  the  stream 
below. 

The  Etruscans  paused  in  their  course  at  this 
crashing  fall,  and  gazed,  not  without  admiration,  at 
the  stalwart  champion  who  had  stayed  an  army  in 
its  victorious  career.  He  was  theirs  now ;  he  could 
not  escape;  his  life  should  pay  the  penalty  for  their 
failure. 

But  Horatius  had  no  such  thought.  He  looked 
down  on  the  stream,  and  prayed  to  the  god  of  the 
river,  "  O  Father  Tiber,  I  pray  thee  to  receive  these 


HOW  BRAVE  HORATIUS  KEPT  THE  BRIDGE.    47 

arms  and  me  who  bear  them,  and  to  let  thy  waters 
befriend  and  save  me." 

Then,  with  a  quick  spring,  he  plunged,  heavy  with 
armor,  into  the  swift-flowing  stream,  and  struck  out 
boldly  for  the  shore.  The  foemen  rushed  upon  the 
bridge  and  poured  their  darts  thick  about  him ;  yet 
none  struck  him,  and  he  swam  safely  to  the  shore, 
where  his  waiting  friends  drew  him  in  triumph  from 
the  stream. 

For  this  "grand  deed  of  heroism  the  Komanjs  set 
up  a  statue  to  Horatius  in  the  comitium,  and  gave 
him  in  reward  as  much  land  as  he  could  drive  his 
plough  round  in  the  space  of  a  whole  day.  Such 
deeds  cannot  be  fitly  told  in  halting  prose,  and  Lord 
Macaulay,  in  his  "  Lays  of  Ancient  Eome,"  has  most 
ably  and  picturesquely  told 

"  How  well  Horatius  kept  the  bridge 
In  the  brave  days  of  old. ' ' 

But  though  Home  was  saved  from  capture  by 
assault,  the  war  was  not  ended,  and  other  deeds  of 
Roman  heroism  were  to  be  done.  Porsenna  pressed 
the  siege  of  the  city  so  closely  that  hunger  became 
his  ally,  and  the  Komans  suffered  greatly.  Then 
another  patriot  devoted  his  life  to  his  city's  good. 
This  man,  a  young  noble  named  Caius  Mucius,  went 
to  the  senate  and  offered  to  go  to  the  Etruscan  camp 
and  slay  Lars  Porsenna  in  the  midst  of  his  men. 

His  proposal  acceded  to,  he  crossed  the  stream  by 
stealth  and  slipped  covertly  into  the  camp,  through 
which  he  made  his  way,  seeking  the  king.  At  length 


48  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ho  saw  a  man  dressed  in  a  scarlet  robe  and  seated 
on  a  lofty  seat,  while  many  were  about  him,  coming 
and  going.  "  This  must  be  King  Porsenna,"  he  said 
to  himself,  and  he  glided  stealthily  through  the  crowd 
until  he  came  near  by,  when,  drawing  a  concealed 
dagger  from  beneath  his  cloak,  he  sprang  upon  the 
man  and  stabbed  him  to  the  heart. 

But  the  bold  assassin  had  made  a  sad  mistake. 
The  man  he  had  slain  was  not  the  king,  but  his 
scribe,  the  king's  chief  officer.  Being  instantly 
seized,  he  was  brought  before  Porsenna,  where  the 
guards  threatened  him  with  sharp  torments  unless 
he  would  truly  answer  all  their  questions. 

"Torments!"  he  said.  "You  shall  see  how  little 
I  care  for  them." 

And  he  thrust  his  right  hand  into  the  fire  that 
was  burning  on  the  altar,  and  held  it  there  till  it 
was  completely  consumed. 

King  Porsenna  looked  at  him  with  an  admiration 
that  subdued  all  anger.  Never  had  he  seen  a  man  of 
such  fortitude. 

"  Go  your  way,"  he  cried,  "  for  you  have  harmed 
youi'self  more  than  me.  You  are  a  brave  man,  and 
I  send  you  back  to  Rome  free  and  unhurt." 

"  And  you  are  a  generous  king,"  said  Caius,  "  and 
shall  learn  more  from  me  for  your  kindness  than 
tortures  could  have  wrung  from  my  lips.  Know, 
then,  that  three  hundred  noble  youths  of  Rome  have 
bound  themselves  by  oath  to  take  your  life.  I  am 
but  the  first ;  the  others  will  in  turn  lie  in  wait  for 
you.  I  warn  you  to  look  well  to  yourself." 

He  was  then  set  free,  and  went  back  to  the  city, 


HOW    BRAVE    HOBATIUS    KEPT   THE   BRIDGE.         4f 

where  he  was  afterwards  known  as  Scaevola,  the  left- 
handed. 

The  warning  of  Caius  moved  King  Porsenna  to 
offer  the  Eomans  terms  of  peace,  which  they  gladly 
accepted.  They  were  forced  to  give  up  all  the  land 
they  had  conquered  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Tiber, 
and  to  agree  not  to  use  iron  except  to  cultivate  the 
earth.  They  were  also  to  give  as  hostages  ten  noble 
youths  and  as  many  maidens.  These  were  sent; 
but  one  of  the  maidens,  Cloelia  by  name,  escaped 
from  the  Etruscan  camp,  and,  bidding  the  other 
maidens  to  follow,  fled  to  the  river,  into  which  they 
all  plunged  and  swam  safely  across  to  Eome. 

They  were  sent  back  by  the  Romans,  whose  way 
it  was  to  keep  their  pledges ;  but  King  Porsenna, 
admiring  the  courage  of  Ckelia,  set  her  free,  and 
bade  her  choose  such  ot  the  youths  as  she  wished  to 
go  with  her.  She  chose  those  of  tenderest  age,  and 
the  king  set  them  free. 

The  Romans  rewarded  Caius  by  a  gift  of  land,  and 
had  a  statue  made  of  Cloelia,  which  was  set  up  in 
the  highest  part  of  the  Sacred  "Way.  And  King 
Porsenna  led  his  army  home,  with  Tarquin  still 
dethroned. 


ii.— c       d 


THE  BATTLE  OF  LAKE 
REGILLUS. 

A  third  time  Tarquin  the  Proud  marched  against 
Eome,  this  time  in  alliance  with  the  Latins,  whose 
thirty  cities  had  joined  together  and  declared  war 
against  the  Romans.  But  as  many  of  the  Romans 
had  married  Latin  wives,  and  many  of  the  Latins 
had  got  their  wives  from  Rome,  it  was  resolved  that 
the  women  on  both  sides,  who  preferred  their  native 
land  to  their  husbands,  might  leave  their  new  homes 
and  take  with  them  their  virgin  daughters.  And, 
as  the  legend  tells,  all  the  Latin  women  but  two 
remained  in  Rome,  while  all  the  Roman  women 
returned  with  their  daughters  to  their  fathers' 
homes. 

The  two  armies  met  by  the  side  of  Lake  Regillus, 
and  there  was  fought  a  battle  the  story  of  which 
reads  like  a  tale  from  the  Iliad  of  Homer ;  for  we 
are  told  not  of  how  the  armies  fought,  but  of  how 
their  champions  met  and  fought  in  single  combats 
upon  the  field.  King  Tarquin  was  there,  now  hoary 
with  years,  yet  sitting  his  horse  and  bearing  his 
lance  with  the  grace  and  strength  of  a  young  man. 
And  there  was  Titus  his  son,  leading  into  battle  all 
the  banished  band  of  the  Tarquins.  And  with  them 
was  Octavius  Mamilius,  the  leader  of  the  Latins, 
60 


THE   BATTLE   OF   LAKE   REGILLTJS.  51 

who  swore  to  seat  Tarquin  again  on  his  throne  and 
to  make  the  Komans  subjects  of  the  Latins. 

On  the  Eoman  side  were  many  true  and  tried 
warriors,  among  them  Titus  Herminius,  one  of  those 
who  fought  on  the  bridge  by  the  side  of  Horatius 
Codes,  when  that  champion  fought  so  well  for 
Rome. 

It  is  too  long  to  tell  how  warrior  rode  against 
warrior  with  levelled  lances,  and  how  this  one  was 
struck  through  the  breast  and  that  one  through  the 
arm,  and  so  on  in  true  Homeric  style.  The  battle 
was  a  series  of  duels,  like  those  fought  on  the  plain 
of  Troy.  But  at  length  the  Tarqain  band,  under 
the  lead  of  Titus,  charged  so  fiercely  that  the 
Komans  began  to  give  way,  many  of  their  bravest 
having  been  slain. 

At  this  juncture  Aulus,  the  leader  of  the  Romans, 
rode  up  with  his  own  chosen  band,  and  bade  them 
level  their  lances  and  slay  all,  friend  or  foe,  whose 
faces  were  turned  towards  them.  There  was  to  be 
no  mercy  for  a  Roman  whose  i?,ce  was  turned  from 
the  field.  This  onset  stopped  the  flight,  and  Aulus 
charged  fiercely  upon  the  Tarquins,  praying,  as  he 
did  so,  to  the  divine  warriors  Castor  and  Pollux,  to 
whom  he  vowed  to  dedicate  a  temple  if  they  would 
aid  him  in  the  fight.  And  he  promised  the  soldiers 
that  the  two  who  should  first  break  into  the  camp  of 
the  enemy  should  receive  a  rich  reward. 

Then  suddenly,  at  the  head  of  the  chosen  band, 
appeared  two  unknown  horsemen,  in  the  first  bloom 
of  youth  and  taller  and  fairer  than  mortal  men, 
while  the  horses  they  rode  were  white  as  the  driven 


52  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

snow.  On  went  the  charge,  led  by  these  two  noble 
strangers,  before  whom  the  enemy  fled  in  mortal 
terror,  while  Titus,  the  last  of  the  sons  of  King  Tar- 
quin,  fell  dead  from  his  steed.  The  camp  of  the 
Latins  being  reached,  these  two  horsemen  were  the 
first  to  break  into  it,  and  soon  the  whole  army  of  the 
enemy  was  in  disorderly  flight  and  the  battle  won. 

Aulus  now  sought  the  two  strange  horsemen,  to 
give  them  the  reward  he  had  promised;  but  ke 
sought  in  vain ;  they  were  not  to  be  found,  among 
either  the  living  or  the  dead,  and  no  man  had  set 
eyes  upon  them  since  the  camp  was  won.  They  had 
vanished  as  suddenly  as  they  had  appeared.  But  on 
the  hard  black  rock  which  surrounds  the  lake  was 
visible  the  mark  of  a  horse's  hoof,  such  as  no  earthly 
steed  could  ever  have  made.  For  ages  afterwards 
this  mark  remained. 

But  the  strangers  appeared  once  again.  It  was 
known  in  Rome  that  the  armies  were  joined  in  battle, 
and  the  longing  for  tidings  from  the  field  grew  in- 
tense. Suddenly,  as  the  sun  went  down  behind  the 
city  walls,  there  were  seen  in  the  Forum  two  horse- 
men on  milk-white  steeds,  taller  and  fairer  than  the 
tallest  and  fairest  of  men.  Their  horses  were  bathed 
in  foam,  and  they  looked  like  men  fresh  from  battle. 

Alighting  near  the  Temple  of  Vesta,  where  a 
spring  of  water  bubbles  from  the  ground,  these  men, 
-vhom  no  Romans  had  ever  seen  before,  washed  from 
their  persons  the  battle-stains.  As  they  did  so  men 
crowded  round  and  eagerly  questioned  them.  In 
reply,  they  told  them  how  the  battle  had  been  fought 
and  won, — though  in  truth  the  battle  ended  only  as 


THE   BATTLE   OP   LAKE    REGILLUS.  53 

the  sun  went  down  over  Lake  Regillus.  They  then 
mounted  their  horses  and  rode  from  the  Forum,  and 
were  seen  no  more.  Men  sought  them  far  and  wide, 
but  no  one  set  eyes  on  them  again. 

Then  Aulus  told  the  Romans  how  he  had  prayed 
to  Castor  and  Pollux,  the  divine  twins,  and  said  thai 
it  could  be  none  but  they  who  had  broken  so  fiercely 
into  the  enemy's  camp,  and  had  borne  the  news  of 
Victory  with  more  than  mortal  speed  to  Rome.  So 
he  built  the  temple  he  had  vowed  to  the  hero  gods, 
and  gave  there  rich  offerings  as  the  rewards  he  had 
promised  to  the  two  who  should  first  enter  the  camp 
of  the  foe. 

/Thus  ended  the  hopes  of  King  Tarquin,  against 
whom  the  gods  had  taken  arms.  His  sons  and  all 
his  family  slain,  he  was  left  ruined  and  hopeless,  and 
retired  to  the  city  of  Cumse,  whence  formerly  the 
Sibyl  had  come  to  his  court.  Here  he  died,  and  thus 
passed  away  the  last  of  the  Roman  kings. 


THE  REVOLT  OF  THE  PEOPLE. 


THE  overthrow  of  the  kings  of  Rome  did  not 
relieve  the  people  from  all  their  oppression.  The  in- 
habitants of  that  city  had  long  been  divided  into 
two  great  classes,  the  Patricians,  or  nobles,  and  the 
Plebeians,  or  common  people,  and  the  former  held  in 
their  hand  nearly  all  the  wealth  and  power  of  the 
state.  The  senate,  the  law-making  body,  were  all 
Patricians;  the  consuls,  the  executors  of  the  law, 
were  chosen  from  their  ranks;  and  the  Plebeians 
were  left  with  few  rights  and  little  protection. 

It  was  through  the  avarice  of  money-lending 
nobles  that  the  people  were  chiefly  oppressed.  There 
were  no  laws  limiting  the  rate  of  interest,  and  the 
rich  lent  to  the  poor  at  extravagant  rates  of  usury. 
The  interest,  when  not  paid,  was  added  to  the  debt, 
so  that  in  time  it  became  impossible  for  many 
debtors  to  pay. 

And  the  laws  against  debtors  had  become  terribly 
severe.  They  might,  with  all  their  families,  be  held 
as  slaves.  Or  if  the  debtor  refused  to  sell  himself 
to  his  creditor,  and  still  could  not  pay  his  debt,  he 
might  be  imprisoned  in  fetters  for  sixty  days.  At 
tne  end  of  that  time,  if  no  friend  had  paid  his  debt, 
he  could  be  put  to  death,  or  sold  as  a  slave  into  a 
foreign  state.  If  there  were  several  creditors,  they 
64 


THE  REVOLT  OP  THE  PEOPLE.         55 

could  actually  cut  his  body  to  pieces,  each  taking  a 
piece  proportional  in  size  to  his  claim. 

This  cruel  severity  was  more  than  any  people 
could  long  endure.  It  led  to  a  revolution  in  Kome. 
In  the  year  495  B.C.,  fifteen  years  after  the  Tarquins 
had  been  expelled,  a  poor  debtor,  who  had  fought 
valiantly  in  the  wars,  broke  from  his  prison,  and — 
with  his  clothes  in  tatters  and  chains  clanking  upon 
his  limbs — appealed  eloquently  to  the  people  in  the 
Forum,  and  showed  them  on  his  emaciated  body  the 
scars  of  the  many  battles  in  which  he  had  fought. 

His  tale  was  a  sad  one.  While  he  served  in  the 
Sabine  war,  the  enemy  had  pillaged  and  burned  his 
house ;  and  when  he  returned  home,  it  was  to  find 
his  cattle  stolen  and  his  farm  heavily  taxed.  Forced 
to  borrow  money,  the  interest  had  brought  him 
deeply  into  debt.  Finally  he  had  been  attacked  by 
pestilence,  and  being  unable  to  work  for  his  creditor, 
he  had  been  thrown  into  prison  and  cruelly  scourged, 
the  marks  of  the  lash  being  still  evident  upon  his 
bleeding  back. 

This  piteous  story  roused  its  hearers  to  fury.  The 
whole  city  broke  into  tumult,  as  the  woful  tale 
passed  from  lip  to  lip.  Many  debtors  escaped  from 
their  prisons  and  begged  protection  from  the  in- 
censed multitude.  The  consuls  found  themselves 
powerless  to  restore  order;  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
uproar  horsemen  came  riding  hotly  through  the 
gates,  crying  out  that  a  hostile  army  was  near  at 
hand,  marching  to  besiege  the  city. 

Here  was  a  splendid  opportunity  for  the  Plebeians. 
When  called  upon  to  enroll  their  names  and  take 


56  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

arms  for  the  city's  defence,  they  refused.  The 
Patricians,  they  said,  might  fight  their  own  battles. 
As  for  them,  they  had  rather  die  together  at  home 
than  perish  separate  upon  the  battle-field. 

This  refusal  left  the  Patricians  in  a  quandary. 
With  riot  in  the  streets  and  war  beyond  the  walls 
they  were  at  the  mercy  of  the  commons.  They 
were  forced  to  promise  a  mitigation  of  the  laws, 
declaring  that  no  one  should  henceforth  seize  the 
goods  of  a  soldier  while  he  was  in  camp,  or  hinder 
a  citizen  from  enlisting  by  keeping  him  in  prison. 
This  promise  satisfied  the  people.  The  debtors' 
prisons  were  emptied,  and  their  late  tenants  crowded 
with  enthusiasm  into  the  ranks.  Through  the  gates 
the  army  marched,  met  the  foe,  and  drove  him  in 
defeat  from  the  soil  of  the  Eoman  state. 

Victory  gained,  the  Plebeians  looked  for  laws  to 
sustain  the  promises  under  which  they  had  fought. 
They  looked  in  vain ;  the  senate  took  no  action  for 
their  redress.  But  they  had  learned  their  power, 
and  were  not  again  to  be  enslaved.  Their  action 
was  deliberate  but  decided.  Taking  measures  to 
protect  their  homes  on  the  Aventine  Hill,  they  left 
the  city  the  next  year  in  a  body,  and  sought  a  hill 
beyond  the  Anio,  about  three  miles  beyond  the  walls 
of  Rome.  Here  they  encamped,  built  fortifications, 
and  sent  word  to  their  lordly  rulers  that  they  were 
done  with  empty  promises,  and  would  fight  no  more 
for  the  state  until  the  state  kept  its  faith.  All  the 
good  of  their  fighting  came  to  the  Patricians,  they 
said,  and  these  might  now  defend  themselves  and 
their  wealth. 


THE    REVOLT   OP    THE    PEOPLE.  57 

The  senate  was  thrown  into  a  panic  by  this 
decided  action.  When  the  hostile  cities  without 
should  learn  of  it,  they  might  send  armies  in  haste 
to  undefended  Eome.  The  people  left  in  the  city 
feared  the  Patricians,  and  the  Patricians  feared  them. 
All  was  doubt  and  anxiety.  At  length  the  senate, 
driven  to  desperation,  sent  an  embassy  to  the  rebels 
to  treat  for  peace,  being  in  deadly  fear  that  some 
enemy  might  assail  and  capture  the  city  in  the 
absence  of  the  bulk  of  its  inhabitants. 

The  messenger  sent,  Menenius  Agrippa  Lanatus, 
was  a  man  famed  for  eloquence,  and  a  popular 
favorite.  In  his  address  to  the  people  in  their  camp 
he  repeated  to  them  the  following  significant  fable  ; 

"  At  a  time  when  all  the  parts  ot  the  body  did  not 
agree  together,  as  they  do  now,  but  each  had  its  own 
method  and  language,  the  other  parts  rebelled  against 
the  belly.  They  said  that  it  lay  quietly  enjoying 
itself  in  the  centre,  while  they,  by  care,  labor,  and 
service,  kept  it  in  luxury.  They  therefore  conspired 
that  the  hands  should  not  convey  food  to  the  mouth, 
the  mouth  receive  it,  nor  the  teeth  chew  it.  They 
thus  hoped  to  subdue  the  belly  by  famine ;  but  they 
found  that  they  and  all  the  other  parts  of  the  body 
suffered  as  much.  Then  they  saw  that  the  belly  by 
no  means  rested  in  sloth ;  that  it  supplied  instead  of 
receiving  nourishment,  sending  to  all  parts  of  the 
body  the  blood  that  gave  life  and  strength  to  the 
whole  system." 

It  was  the  same,  he  said,  with  the  body  of  the 
state.  All  must  work  in  unity,  if  all  would  prosper. 
This  homely  argument  hit  the  popular  fancy.  The 


58  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

people  consented  to  treat  for  their  return  if  their 
liberties  could  be  properly  secured.  But  they  must 
now  have  deeds  instead  of  words.  It  was  not  politi- 
cal power  they  sought,  but  protection,  and  protection 
they  would  have. 

Their  demands  were  as  follows :  All  debts  should 
be  cancelled,  and  all  debtors  held  by  their  creditors 
should  be  released.  And  hereafter  the  Plebeians 
should  have  as  their  protectors  two  officials,  who 
should  have  power  to  veto  all  oppressive  laws,  while 
their  persons  should  be  held  as  sacred  and  inviolable 
as  those  of  the  messengers  of  the  gods.  These  offi- 
cials were  to  be  called  Tribunes,  and  to  be  the  chief 
officers  of  the  commons  as  the  consuls  were  of  the 
nobles. 

This  proposition  was  accepted  by  the  senate,  and 
a  treaty  signed  between  the  contesting  parties,  as 
solemnly  as  if  they  had  been  two  separate  nations. 
It  was  an  occasion  as  important  to  the  liberties  of 
Romans  as  the  treaty  signed  many  centuries  after- 
wards on  the  field  of  Runnymede,  between  King  John 
and  his  barons,  was  to  the  liberties  of  Englishmen, 
and  was  held  by  the  Romans  in  like  high  regard. 
The  hill  on  which  the  treaty  had  been  made  was  ever 
after  known  as  the  Sacred  Mount.  Its  top  was  con- 
secrated and  an  altar  built  upon  it,  on  which  sacri- 
fices were  made  to  Jupiter,  the  god  who  strikes  men 
with  terror  and  then  delivers  them  from  fear ;  for 
the  people  had  fled  thither  in  dread,  and  were  now  to 
return  home  in  safety. 

Thus  ended  the  great  revolt  of  the  people,  who 
had  gained  in  the  Tribunes  defenders  of  more  power 


THE  REVOLT  OP  THE  PEOPLE.         59 

and  importance  than  they  or  the  senate  knew.  They 
were  never  again  to  suffer  from  the  bitter  oppression 
to  which  they  had  been  subjected  in  preceding  years. 
As  for  Lanatus,  to  whose  pleadings  they  had  yielded, 
he  died  before  the  year  ended,  and  was  found  to  have 
not  left  enough  to  pay  for  his  funeral.  Therefore 
the  Plebeians  collected  funds  to  give  him  a  splendid 
burial;  but  the  senate  having  decreed  that  the  state 
should  bear  this  expense,  the  money  raised  by  the 
grateful  people  was  formed  into  a  fund  for  the  bene- 
fit of  his  children. 


THE  REVENGE    OF   CORIO- 

LANUS. 

CAIUS  MABCIUS,  a  noble  Eoman  youth,  descended 
from  the  worthy  king  Ancus  Marcius,  fought  val- 
iantly when  but  seventeen  years  of  age  in  the  battle 
of  Lake  Eegillus,  and  was  there  crowned  with  an 
oaken  wreath,  the  .Roman  reward  for  saving  the  life 
of  a  fellow-soldier.  This  he  showed  with  the  great- 
est joy  to  his  mother,  Volumnia,  whom  he  loved  ex- 
ceedingly, it  being  his  greatest  pleasure  to  receive 
praise  from  her  lips  for  his  exploits.  He  afterwards 
won  many  more  crowns  in  battle,  and  became  one  of 
the  most  famous  of  Eoman  soldiers. 

One  of  his  memorable  exploits  took  place  during 
a  war  with  the  Volscians,  in  which  the  Eomans 
attacked  the  city  of  Corioli.  The  citizens  made  a 
sally,  and  drove  the  Eomans  back  to  their  camp. 
But  Caius,  with  a  few  followers,  stopped  them  and 
turned  the  tide  of  battle,  driving  the  Volscians  back. 
As  they  fled  into  the  city  through  the  open  gates,  he 
cried,  "  Those  gates  are  set  open  for  us  rather  than 
for  the  Volscians.  Why  are  we  afraid  to  rush  in  ?" 
And  suiting  his  act  to  his  words,  the  daring  soldier 
pursued  the  enemy  into  the  town. 

Here  he  found  himself  almost  alone,  for  very  few 
had  followed  him.  The  enemy  turned  on  the  bold 
60 


THE   REVENGE   OF   CORIOLANUS.  61 

invaders,  but  Caius  proved  so  strong  of  hand  and 
stout  of  he?rt  that  he  drove  them  all  before  him, 
keeping  a  way  clear  for  the  Romans,  who  soon 
thronged  in  through  the  open  gate  and  took  the 
city.  The  army  gave  Caius  the  sole  credit  for  the 
victory,  saying  that  he  alone  had  taken  Corioli ;  and 
the  general  said,  "  Let  him  be  called  after  the  name 
of  the  city."  He  was,  therefore,  afterwards  known 
by  the  name  of  Caius  Marcius  Coriolanus. 

Courage  was  not  the  only  marked  quality  of 
Coriolanus.  His  pride  was  equally  great.  He  was 
a  noble  of  the  nobles,  so  haughty  in  demeanor  and 
so  disdainful  of  the  commons  that  they  grew  to 
hate  him  bitterly.  At  length  came  a  time  of  great 
scarcity  of  food.  The  people  were  on  the  verge  of 
famine,  to  relieve  which  shiploads  of  corn  were  sent 
from  Sicily  to  Rome.  The  senate  resolved  to  dis- 
tribute this  corn  among  the  suffering  people,  but 
Coriolanus  opposed  this,  saying,  "If  they  want  corn 
let  them  show  their  obedience  to  the  Patricians,  as 
their  fathers  did,  and  give  up  their  tribunes.  If 
they  do  this  we  will  let  them  have  corn,  and  take 
care  of  them." 

When  the  people  heard  of  what  the  proud  roble 
had  said  they  broke  into  such  fury  that  a  mob  gath- 
ered around  the  doors  of  the  senate  house,  prepared 
to  seize  and  tear  him  to  pieces  when  he  came  out. 
They  were  checked  in  this  by  the  tribunes,  who 
said,  "  Let  us  not  have  violence.  We  will  accuse 
him  of  treason  before  the  assembly,  and  you  shall  be 
his  judges." 

The  tribunes,  therefore,  as  the  law  gave  them 
6 


62  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  right,  summoned  Coriolanus  to  appear  before 
the  popular  tribunal  and  answer  to  the  charges 
against  him.  But  he,  knowing  how  deeply  he  had 
offended  them,  and  that  they  would  show  him  no 
mercy,  stayed  not  for  the  trial,  but  fled  from  Eome, 
exiled  from  his  native  land  by  his  pride  and  disdain 
of  the  people. 

The  exile  made  his  way  to  the  land  of  the  Vol- 
scians,  and  seating  himself  by  the  hearth-fire  of  At- 
tius  Tullius,  their  chief,  waited  there  with  covered 
head  till  his  late  bitter  foe  should  come  in.  How 
Attius  would  receive  him  he  knew  not ;  but  he  was 
homeless,  and  had  now  only  his  enemies  to  trust. 
But  when  the  chieftain  entered,  and  learned  that  the 
man  who  sat  crouched  beside  his  hearth,  subject  to 
his  will,  was  the  great  warrior  who  by  his  own 
hands  had  taken  a  Yolscian  city,  but  was  now  ban- 
ished and  a  fugitive,  he  was  filled  with  compassion. 
He  greeted  him  kindly  and  offered  him  a  home,  say- 
ing to  himself,  "  Caius,  our  worst  foe,  is  now  our  friend 
and  a  foe  to  Eome  ;  we  will  make  war  against  that 
proud  city,  and  by  his  aid  will  conquer  it." 

But  the  Volscians  were  not  eager  for  war.  They 
were  afraid  of  the  Romans,  who  had  so  often  de- 
feated them,  and  Attius  sought  in  vain  to  stir  them 
to  hostility.  Failing  to  rouse  the*z  by  eloquence, 
he  practised  craft.  There  was  a  great  festival  at 
Rome,  to  which  had  come  the  people  of  various 
cities,  among  them  many  of  the  Volscians.  Attius 
now  went  privately  to  the  Xoman  consuls  and  bade 
<Jvatu  beware  of  the  Volscians,  lest  they  should  stir 
op  a  not  and  make  /rouble  in  the  city,  hinting  that 


THE  REVENGE   OP   CORIOLANUS.  63 

mischief  was  intended.  In  consequence  of  this 
warning  proclamation  was  made  that  every  Vol- 
scian  should  leave  Rome  before  the  setting  of  the 
sun. 

This  produced  the  effect  which  Attius  had  hoped. 
He  met  the  Volscians  on  their  way  home,  and  found 
them  fired  with  indignation  against  Rome.  He  pre- 
tended similar  indignation.  "  You  have  been  made 
a  show  of  before  all  the  nations,"  he  cried.  "  You 
and  your  wives  and  children  have  been  basely  in- 
sulted. They  have  made  war  on  us  while  their 
guests ;  if  you  are  men  you  will  make  them  rue  this 
deed." 

His  words  inflamed  his  countrymen.  The  story 
of  the  insult  spread  widely  through  the  country,  all 
the  tribes  of  the  Volscians  took  up  the  quarrel,  and 
a  great  army  was  raised  and  set  in  march  towards 
Rome,  with  Attius  and  Coriolanus  at  its  head. 

The  Volscian  force  was  greater  than  the  Romans 
were  prepared  to  meet,  and  the  army  marched  victo- 
riously onward,  taking  city  after  city,  and  finally 
encamping  within  five  miles  of  Rome.  When  the 
Volscians  entered  Roman  territory  they  laid  waste, 
by  order  of  Coriolanus,  the  lands  of  the  commons, 
but  spared  those  of  the  nobles,  the  exiled  patrician 
deeming  the  former  his  foes  and  the  latter  his 
friends.  The  approach  of  this  powerful  army 
threw  the  Romans  into  dismay.  They  had  been 
assailed  so  suddenly  that  they  had  made  no  prepara- 
tions for  defence,  and  the  city  seemed  to  lie  at  the 
mercy  of  its  foes.  The  women  ran  to  the  temples 
to  pray  for  the  favor  of  the  gods.  The  people  de- 


64  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

manded  that  the  senate  should  send  deputies  to  the 
invading  army  to  treat  for  peace.  The  senate,  ap- 
parently no  less  frightened  than  the  people,  obeyed, 
sending  five  leading  Patricians  to  the  Volscian  camp. 

These  deputies  were  haughtily  received  by  Corio- 
lanus,  who  offered  them  the  following  severe  terms : 
"  We  will  give  you  no  peace  till  you  restore  to  the 
Volscians  all  the  land  and  cities  which  Borne  has 
ever  taken  from  them,  and  till  you  make  them  citi- 
zens of  Rome,  and  give  them  all  the  rights  in  your 
city  which  you  have  yourselves." 

These  conditions  the  deputies  had  no  power  to 
accept,  and  they  threw  the  senate  into  dismay.  The 
deputies  were  sent  again,  instructed  to  ask  for  gen- 
tler terms,  but  now,  Coriolanus  refused  even  to  let 
them  enter  his  camp. 

This  harsh  repulse  plunged  Rome  into  mortal 
terror.  The  senate,  helpless  to  resist,  now  sent  the 
priests  of  the  gods  and  the  augurs,  all  clothed  in 
their  sacred  garments,  and  bearing  the  sacred  em- 
blems from  the  temples.  But  even  this  solemn  dele- 
gation Coriolanus  refused  to  receive,  and  sent  them 
back  to  Rome  unheard. 

Where  all  this  time  was  the  Roman  army,  which 
always  before  and  after  made  itself  heard  and  felt  ? 
This  we  are  not  told.  We  are  in  the  land  of  legend, 
and  cannot  look  for  too  much  consistency.  For  once 
in  its  history  Rome  seems  to  have  forgotten  that  its 
mission  was  not  to  plead,  but  to  fight.  Perhaps  its 
armies  had  been  beaten  and  demoralized  in  previous 
battles.  At  any  rate  we  can  but  tell  the  story  as  it 
is  told  to  us. 


THE    REVENGE    OF   CORIOLANUS.  65 

The  help  of  delegates,  priests,  and  augurs  having 
proved  unavailing,  that  of  women  was  next  sought. 
A  noble  lady,  Valeria  by  name,  who  with  other  sup- 
pliants had  sought  the  Temple  of  Jupiter,  was  in- 
spired by  a  sudden  thought,  which  seemed  sent  by 
the  god  himself.  Rising,  and  bidding  the  other 
noble  ladies  to  accompany  her,  she  proceeded  to  the 
house  of  Volumnia,  the  mother  of  Coriolanus,  whom 
she  found  with  Virgilia,  his  wife,  and  his  little  chil- 
dren. 

"  We  have  come  to  ask  you  to  join  us,"  she  said, 
"in  order  that  we  women,  without  aid  from  man, 
may  deliver  our  country,  and  win  for  ourselves  a 
name  more  glorious  even  than  that  of  the  Sabine 
wives  of  old,  who  stopped  the  battle  between  their 
husbands  and  fathers.  Come  with  us  to  the  camp 
of  Caius,  and  let  us  pray  him  to  show  us  mercy." 

"  It  is  well  thought  of;  we  shall  go  with  you," 
said  Volumnia,  and,  with  Virgilia  and  her  children, 
the  noble  matron  prepared  to  seek  the  camp  and  tent 
of  her  exiled  son. 

It  was  a  sad  and  solemn  spectacle,  as  this  train  of 
noble  ladies,  clad  in  their  habiliments  of  woe,  and 
with  bent  heads  and  sorrowful  faces,  wound  through 
the  hostile  camp,  from  which  they  were  not  ex- 
cluded, like  the  men.  Even  the  Volscian  soldiers 
watched  them  with  pitying  eyes,  and  spoke  no  word 
as  they  moved  slowly  past.  On  reaching  the  midst 
of  the  camp,  they  saw  Coriolanus  on  the-  general's 
seat,  with  the  Volscian  chiefs  gathered  around  him. 

At  first  he  wondered  who  these  women  could  be. 
But  when  they  came  near,  and  he  saw  his  mother  at 
ii.— «  6* 


66  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  head  of  the  train,  his  deep  love  for  her  welled  up 
so  strongly  in  his  heart  that  he  could  not  restrain 
himself,  but  sprang  up  and  ran  to  meet  and  kiss  her. 
The  Roman  matron  stopped  him  with  a  dignified 
gesture,  saying, — 

"Ere  you  kiss  me,  let  me  know  whether  I  am 
speaking  to  an  enemy  or  to  my  son;  whether  I 
stand  here  as  your  prisoner  or  your  mother." 

He  stood  before  her  in  silence,  with  bent  head,  and 
unable  to  speak. 

"  Must  it  then  be  that  if  I  had  never  borne  a  son, 
Home  would  have  never  seen  the  camp  of  an  enemy?" 
said  Volumnia,  in  sorrowful  tones.  "  But  I  am  too 
old  to  bear  much  longer  your  shame  and  my  misery. 
Think  not  of  me,  but  of  your  wife  and  children, 
whom  you  would  doom  to  death  or  to  life  in  bond- 
age." 

Then  Virgilia  and  the  children  came  up  and  kissed 
him,  and  all  the  noble  ladies  in  the  train  burst  into 
tears  and  bemoaned  the  peril  of  their  country. 
Coriolanus  still  stood  silent,  his  face  working  with 
contending  thoughts.  At  length  he  cried  out,  in 
heart-rending  accents,  "  O  mother,  what  have  you 
done  to  me?" 

Clasping  her  hand,  he  wrung  it  vehemently,  say- 
ing, "  Mother,  the  victory  is  yours !  A  happy  victory 
for  you  and  Rome,  but  shame  and  ruin  to  your  son." 

Then  he  embraced  her  with  yearning  heart,  and 
afterwards  clasped  his  wife  and  children  to  his 
breast,  bidding  them  return  with  their  tale  of  con- 
quest to  Rome.  As  for  himself,  he  said,  only  exile 
and  shame  remained. 


THE   KEVENGE   OF   CORIOLANUS.  67 

Before  the  women  reached  home  the  army  of  the 
Volscians  was  on  its  homeward  march.  Ccriolanus 
never  led  them  against  Eome  again.  He  lived  and 
died  in  exile,  far  from  his  wife  and  children.  When 
very  old,  he  sadly  remarked,  "  That  now  in  his  old 
age  he  knew  the  full  bitterness  of  banishment." 

The  Romans,  to  honor  Yolumnia  and  those  who 
had  gone  with  her  to  the  Yolscian  camp,  built  a 
temple  to  "  Woman's  Fortune"  on  the  spot  where 
Coriolanus  bad  yielded  to  his  mother's  entreaties; 
and  the  first  priestess  of  this  temple  was  Yaleria, 
into  whose  heart  Jupiter  had  put  the  thought  that 
saved  Home. 


CINCINNATUS  AND    THE 
&QUIANS. 

IN  the  old  days  of  Rome,  not  far  from  the  time 
when  Coriolanus  yielded  up  his  revenge  at  his 
mother's  entreaty,  the  Roman  state  possessed  a 
citizen  as  patriotic  as  Coriolanus  was  proud,  and 
who  did  as  much  good  as  the  other  did  evil  to  his 
native  land.  This  citizen,  Lucius  Quinctius  by  name, 
was  usually  called  Cincinnatus,  or  the  "  crisp-haired," 
from  the  fact  that  he  let  his  hair  grow  long,  and 
curled  and  crisped  it  so  carefully  as  to  gain  as  much 
fame  for  his  hair  as  for  his  wisdom  and  valor. 

Cincinnatus  was  the  simplest  and  least  ambitious 
of  men.  He  cared  nothing  for  wealth,  and  had  no 
craving  for  city  life,  but  dwelt  on  his  small  farm 
beyond  the  Tiber,  which  he  worked  with  his  own 
hands,  content,  so  his  crops  grew  well,  to  let  the 
lovers  of  power  and  wealth  pursue  their  own  devices 
within  the  city  walls.  But  he  was  soon  to  be  drawn 
from  the  plough  to  the  sword. 

While  Cincinnatus  was  busy  ploughing  his  land, 
Rome  kept  at  its  old  work  of  ploughing  the  nations. 
War  at  this  time  broke  out  with  the  ^Equians,  a  neigh- 
boring people ;  but  for  this  war  the  ^Equians  were 
to  blame.  They  had  plundered  the  lands  of  some  of 
the  allies  of  Rome,  and  when  deputies  were  sent  to 
68 


CINCINNATUS   AND   THE   .EQUIANS.  69 

complain  of  this  wrong,  Gracchus,  their  chief,  re- 
ceived them  with  insulting  mockery. 

He  was  sitting  in  his  tent,  which  was  pitched  in 
the  shade  of  a  great  evergreen  oak,  when  the  depu- 
ties arrived. 

"I  am  busy  with  other  matters,"  he  answered 
them ;  "  I  cannot  hear  you ;  you  had  better  tell  your 
message  to  the  oak  yonder." 

"Yes,"  said  one  of  the  deputies,  "let  this  sacred 
oak  hear,  and  let  all  the  gods  hear  also,  how  treach- 
erously you  have  broken  the  peace.  They  shall 
hear  it  now,  and  shall  soon  avenge  it ;  for  you  have 
scorned  alike  the  laws  of  the  gods  and  of  men." 

The  deputies  returned  to  Eome,  and  reported  how 
they  had  been  insulted.  The  senate  at  once  declared 
war,  and  an  army  was  sent  towards  Algidus,  where 
the  enemy  lay.  But  Gracchus,  who  was  a  skilled 
soldier,  cunningly  pretended  to  be  afraid  of  the 
Komans,  and  retreated  before  them,  drawing  them 
gradually  into  a  narrow  valley,  on  each  side  of  which 
rose  high,  steep,  and  barren  hills. 

When  he  had  lured  them  fairly  into  this  trap,  he 
sent  a  force  to  close  up  the  en1  ranee  of  the  valley. 
The  Eomans  suddenly  found  that  they  had  been  en- 
trapped into  a  cul-de-sac,  with  impassable  hills  in 
front  and  on  each  side,  and  a  strong  body  of  vEquians 
guarding  the  entrance  to  the  ravine.  There  was 
neither  grass  for  the  horses  nor  food  for  the  men. 
Gracchus  held  not  only  the  entrance,  but  the  hill- 
tops all  round,  so  that  escape  in  any  direction  was 
impossible.  But  before  the  road  in  the  rear  was 
quite  closed  up  five  horsemen  had  managed  to  break 


70  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

out ;  and  these  rode  with  all  speed  to  Eome,  where 
they  told  the  senate  of  the  imminent  danger  of  the 
consul  and  his  army. 

These  tidings  threw  the  senate  into  dismay.  What 
was  to  be  done?  The  other  consul  was  with  his 
army  in  the  country  of  the  Sabines.  He  was  at 
once  sent  for,  and  hastened  with  all  speed  to  Rome. 
Here  a  consultation  took  place,  which  ended  in  the 
leading  senators  saying,  '"There  is  only  one  man 
who  can  deliver  us.  We  must  make  Lucius  Quinc- 
tius  Master  of  the  People."  Master  of  the  People 
meant  in  Rome  what  we  now  mean  by  Dictatoi', — 
that  is,  a  man  above  the  law,  an  autocrat  supreme. 
What  service  this  unambitious  tiller  of  the  ground 
had  previously  done  for  Rome  to  make  him  worthy 
this  distinction  we  are  not  told,  but  it  is  evident  that 
he  was  looked  upon  as  the  man  of  highest  wisdom 
and  soldiership  in  Rome. 

Caius  Nautius,  the  consul,  appointed  Cincinnatus 
to  this  high  office,  as  he  alone  was  privileged  to  do, 
and  then  hastened  back  to  his  army.  Early  the  next 
morning  deputies  from  the  senate  sought  the  farm 
of  the  new  dictator,  to  apprise  him  of  the  honor 
conferred  on  him.  Early  as  it  was,  Cincinnatus  was 
already  at  work  in  his  fields.  He  was  without  his 
toga,  or  cloak,  and  vigorously  digging  in  the  ground 
with  his  spade,  never  dreaming  that  he,  a  simple 
husbandman,  had  been  chosen  to  save  a  state. 

"  We  bring  you  a  message  from  the  senate,"  said 
the  deputies.  "You  must  put  on  your  cloak  to 
receive  it  with  the  fitting  respect.'' 

"  Has  evil  befallen  the  state  ?"  asked  the  farmer, 


CINCINNATTJS   AND   THE   ^EQUIANS.  71 

as  he  bade  his  wife  to  bring  him  his  cloak.  When  he 
had  put  it  on  he  returned  to  the  deputies. 

"  Hail  to  you,  Lucius  Quinctius !"  they  now  said. 
"  The  senate  has  declared  you  Master  of  the  People, 
and  have  sent  us  to  call  you  to  the  city;  for  the 
consul  and  the  array  in  the  country  of  the  ^Equians 
are  in  imminent  danger." 

Without  further  words,  Cincinnatus  accompanied 
them  to  the  boat  in  which  they  had  crossed  the 
Tiber,  and  was  rowed  in  it  to  the  city.  As  he  left 
the  boat  he  was  met  by  a  deputation  consisting  of 
his  three  sons,  his  kinsmen  and  friends,  and  many 
of  the  senators  of  Rome.  They  received  him  with 
the  highest  honor,  and  led  him  in  great  state  to  his 
city  residence,  the  twenty-four  lictors  walking  before 
him,  with  their  rods  and  axes,  while  a  great  multi- 
tude of  the  people  crowded  round  with  shouts  of 
welcome.  The  presence  of  the  lictors  signified  that 
this  plain  farmer  had  been  invested  with  all  the 
power  of  the  former  kings. 

The  new  dictator  quickly  proved  himself  worthy 
of  the  trust  that  had  been  placed  in  him.  He  chose 
at  once  as  his  Master  of  the  Horse  Lucius  Tarqui- 
tius,  a  brave  man,  of  noble  descent,  but  so  poor  that 
he  had  been  forced  to  serve  among  the  foot-soldiers 
instead  of  the  horse.  Then  the  two  entered  the 
Forum,  where  orders  were  given  that  all  booths 
should  be  closed  and  all  lawsuits  stopped.  All  men 
were  forbidden  to  look  after  their  own  affairs  while 
a  Roman  army  lay  in  peril  of  destruction. 

Orders  were  next  given  that  every  man  old  enough 
to  go  to  battle  should  appear  before  sunset  with  hii 


72  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

arms  and  with  five  days'  food  in  the  Field  of  Mars, 
and  should  bring  with  him  twelve  stakes.  These 
they  were  to  cut  where  they  chose,  without  hinder- 
arice  from  any  person.  While  the  soldiers  occupied 
themselves  in  cutting  these  stakes,  the  women  and 
older  men  dressed  their  food.  Such  haste  was  made, 
under  the  energetic  orders  of  the  dictator,  that  an 
army  was  ready,  equipped  as  commanded,  in  the 
Field  of  Mars  before  the  sun  had  set.  The  march 
was  at  once  begun,  and  was  continued  with  such 
rapidity  that  by  midnight  the  vicinity  of  Algidus 
was  reached.  On  the  enemy  being  perceived,  a  halt 
was  called. 

Cincinnatus  now  rode  forward  and  inspected  the 
camp  of  the  enemy,  so  far  as  it  could  be  seen  by 
night.  He  then  ordered  the  soldiers  to  throw  down 
their  baggage,  and  to  keep  only  their  arms  and  stakes. 
Marching  stealthily  forward,  they  now  extended 
their  lines  until  they  had  completely  surrounded  the 
hostile  camp.  Then,  upon  a  given  signal,  a  simulta- 
neous shout  was  raised,  and  each  soldier  began  to  dig 
a  ditch  where  he  stood  and  to  plant  his  stakes  in  the 
ground. 

The  shout  rang  like  a  thunder-clap  through  the 
camp  of  the  jEquians,  waking  them  suddenly  and 
filling  them  with  dismay.  It  also  reached  the  ears 
of  the  Romans  who  lay  in  the  valley,  and  inspired 
them  with  hope,  for  they  recognized  the  Roman 
war-cry.  They  raised  their  own  battle-shout  in  re- 
sponse, and,  seizing  their  arms,  sallied  out  and  made 
a  fierce  attack  upon  the  foe,  fighting  so  desperately 
that  the  vEquians  were  prevented  from  interrupting 


CINCINNATUS   AND   THE   ^EQUIANS.  73 

the  work  of  the  outer  army.  All  the  remainder  of 
the  night  the  battle  went  on,  and  when  day  broke 
the  ^Equians  found  that  a  ditch  and  a  palisade  of 
stakes  had  been  made  around  their  entire  camp. 

This  work  accomplished,  Cincinnatus  ordered  his 
men  to  attack  the  foe,  and  thus  aid  their  entrapped 
countrymen.  The  JEquians,  finding  themselves  be- 
tween two  armies,  and  as  closely  walled  in  as  the 
Eomans  in  the  valley  had  before  been,  fell  into  a 
panic  of  hopelessness,  threw  down  their  arms,  and 
begged  their  foes  for  mercy.  Cincinnatus  now  sig- 
nalled for  the  fighting  to  cease,  and,  meeting  those 
who  came  to  ask  on  what  terms  he  would  spare 
their  lives,  said, — 

"  Give  me  Gracchus  and  your  other  chiefs  bound. 
As  for  you,  you  can  have  your  lives  on  one  condi- 
tion. I  will  set  two  spears  upright  in  the  ground, 
and  put  a  third  spear  across,  and  every  man  of  you, 
giving  up  your  arms  and  your  cloaks,  shall  pass 
under  this  yoke,  and  may  then  go  away  free." 

To  go  under  the  yoke  was  accounted  the  greatest 
dishonor  to  a  soldier.  But  the  jEquians  had  no 
alternative  and  were  obliged  to  submit.  They  de- 
livered up  to  the  Eomans  their  king  and  their  chiefs, 
left  their  camp  with  all  its  spoil  to  the  foe,  and 
passed  without  cloaks  or  arms  under  the  crossed 
spears,  their  heads  bowed  with  shame.  They  then 
went  home,  leaving  their  chiefs  as  Eoman  prisoners. 
Thus  was  Gracchus  punished  for  his  pride. 

In  less  than  a  day's  time  Cincinnatus  had  saved  a 
Roman  army  and  humiliated  the  jEquian  foe.  As  for 
the  battle  spoils,  he  distributed  them  among  his  own 
»  7 


74  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

men,  giving  none  to  the  consul's  army,  and  degraded 
the  consul,  making  him  his  under-officer.  He  then 
marched  the  two  armies  back  to  Eome,  which  he 
reached  that  same  evening,  and  where  he  was  re- 
ceived with  as  much  astonishment  as  joy.  The  res- 
cued army  were  too  full  of  thankfulness  at  their 
escape  to  feel  chagrin  at  their  loss  of  spoil,  and 
voted  to  give  Cincinnatus  a  golden  crown,  calling 
him  their  protector  and  father. 

The  senate  decreed  that  Cincinnatus  should  enter 
the  city  in  triumph.  He  rode  in  his  chariot  through 
the  gates,  Gracchus  and  the  chiefs  of  the  ^Equians 
being  led  in  fetters  before  him.  In  front  of  all  the 
standards  were  borne,  while  in  the  rear  marched  the 
soldiers,  laden  with  their  spoil.  At  the  door  of  every 
house  tables  were  set,  with  meat  and  drink  for  the 
soldiers,  while  the  people,  singing  and  rejoicing, 
danced  with  joy  as  they  followed  the  conqueror's 
chariot,  and  all  Rome  was  given  up  to  feasting  and 
merry-making. 

As  for  Cincinnatus,  he  laid  down  his  power  and 
returned  to  his  farm,  glad  to  have  rescued  a  Roman 
army,  but  caring  nothing  for  the  pomp  and  authority 
he  might  have  gained.  And  for  all  we  know,  he 
lived  and  died  thereafter  a  simple  tiller  of  the  ground. 


THE  SACRIFICE   OF  VIRGINIA. 

IN  the  year  504  B.C.  a  citizen  of  Eegillum,  of  much 
wealth  and  importance,  finding  himself  at  odds  with 
his  fellow-citizens,  left  that  city  and  proceeded  to 
Rome,  with  a  long  train  of  followers,  much  as  the 
elder  Tarquin  had  come  from  Tarquinii.  His  name 
was  Atta  Clausus,  but  in  Rome  he  became  known  as 
Appius  Claudius.  He  was  received  as  a  patrician, 
was  given  ample  lands,  and  he  and  his  descendants 
in  later  years  became  among  the  chief  of  those  who 
hated  and  oppressed  the  plebeians. 

About  half  a  century  after  this  date,  one  of  these 
descendants,  also  named  Appius  Claudius,  was  a 
principal  actor  in  one  of  the  most  dramatic  events 
of  ancient  Rome.  The  trouble  which  had  long  ex- 
isted between  the  patricians  and  the  plebeians  now 
grew  so  pronounced,  and  the  demand  for  a  reform  in 
the  laws  so  great,  that  in  the  year  451  B.C.  a  com- 
mission was  sent  to  the  city  of  Athens,  to  report  on 
the  system  of  government  they  found  there  and 
elsewhere  in  Greece.  After  this  commission  had  re- 
turned and  given  its  report,  a  body  of  ten  patricians 
was  appointed,  under  the  title  of  Decemvirs  (or  ten 
men),  to  prepare  a  new  code  of  laws  for  Rome. 
They  were  chosen  for  one  year,  and  took  the  place 
of  the  consuls,  tribunes,  and  all  the  chief  officials  of 
Rome. 

76 


76  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

At  the  head  of  this  body  was  Appius  Claudius. 
The  laws  of  Rome  had  previously  been  only  partly 
written,  the  remainder  being  held  in  memory  or 
transmitted  as  traditions.  A  complete  code  of 
written  laws  was  desired,  and  to  this  work  the 
decemvirs  set  themselves  diligently.  After  a  few 
months  they  prepared  a  code  of  laws,  which  was 
accepted  by  nobles  and  people  alike  as  fair  and  satis- 
factory, and  it  was  ordered  that  these  laws  should 
be  engraved  upon  ten  tables  of  brass  and  hung  up 
in  the  comitium,  or  place  of  assembly  of  the  people, 
where  all  might  read  them  and  learn  under  what 
laws  they  lived.  It  is  probable  that  the  plebeian 
demand  for  reform  was  so  great  that  the  decemvirs 
did  not  dare  to  disregard  it. 

At  the  end  of  the  year  of  office  of  these  officials 
it  was  felt  that  they  had  done  so  well  that  it  was 
thought  wise  to  continue  them  in  power  for  another 
year.  But  when  the  time  for  election  came  round, 
Appius  Claudius  managed  to  have  his  nine  associates 
defeated,  he  alone  being  re-elected.  The  other  nine 
chosen  were  men  whom  he  felt  sure  he  could  control. 
And  now,  having  a  year's  rule  assured  him,  he  threw 
off  the  cloak  of  moderation  he  had  worn,  and  began 
a  career  of  oppression  of  the  plebeians,  aided  by  his 
subservient  associates.  The  first  step  taken  was  to 
add  two  new  laws  to  the  code,  which  became  known, 
therefore,  as  the  "  Twelve  Tables."  These  new  laws 
proved  so  distasteful  to  the  people  that  they  almost 
broke  into  open  rebellion.  It  was  evident  that  the 
haughty  decemvirs  were  seeking  to  increase  the 
power  of  their  class. 


THE   SACRIFICE   OP   VIRGINIA.  77 

The  decemvirs  did  not  confine  themselves  to  pass- 
ing oppressive  laws.  They  began  a  career  of  out- 
rage and  oppression  that  filled  Rome  with  woe.  The 
youthful  patricians  followed  their  lead,  and  insult 
and  murder  became  common  incidents  in  Rome. 
When  the  second  year  of  the  decemvirate  expired, 
Appius  and  his  colleagues,  knowing  that  they  could 
not  be  elected  again,  showed  no  intention  of  yielding 
up  their  authority.  They  were  supported  by  the 
senate  and  the  patricians,  and  had  gained  such 
power  that  they  defied  the  plebeians.  Those  of  the 
people  who  were  active  in  opposition  were  quietly 
disposed  of,  and  so  intolerable  became  the  tyranny 
that  numbers  of  the  plebeian  party  fled  from  Rome. 

While  this  was  going  on  war  broke  out  with  the 
Sabines  and  the  JSquians.  Of  the  armies  sent  against 
these  nations,  one  was  commanded  by  Lucius  Sicinius 
Dentatus,  among  the  bravest  of  the  Romans,  and 
who  had  fought  in  one  hundred  and  twenty  battles 
and  was  covered  with  the  scars  of  old  wounds.  On 
his  way  to  his  post  this  veteran  was  murdered  by 
bravos  sent  by  Appius  Claudius.  Decemvirs  were 
now  appointed  to  command  the  armies,  Appius  and 
one  of  his  colleagues  remaining  in  Rome  to  look 
after  the  safety  of  the  city. 

The  story  goes  that  both  armies  were  beaten  by 
their  foes,  and  forced  to  retreat  within  Roman  terri- 
tory. While  they  lay  encamped,  not  many  miles 
from  Rome,  an  event  occurred  in  the  city  which 
gave  them  new  work  to  do,  and  proved  that  the  worst 
enemies  of  Rome  were  not  without,  but  within,  her 
walls. 

7"  77 


78  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

In  the  army  sent  against  the  ^Equians  was  a  cen- 
turion named  Lucius  Virginius,  who  had  a  beautiful 
daughter  named  Virginia,  whom  he  had  betrothed 
to  Lucius  Icilius,  recently  one  of  the  tribunes  of 
Rome.  But  the  tyranny  of  the  decemvirs  was 
directed  against  the  wives  and  daughters  as  well  as 
the  men  of  the  plebeians,  as  was  now  to  be  strikingly 
shown. 

One  day,  as  the  beautiful  maiden  was  on  her  way, 
attended  by  her  nurse,  to  school  in  the  Forum 
(around  which  the  schools  were  placed),  she  was 
seen  by  Appius  Claudius,  who  was  so  struck  by  her 
beauty  that  he  determined  to  gain  possession  of  her, 
and  sought  to  win  her  by  insidious  words.  The 
innocent  girl  repelled  his  advances,  but  this  only  in- 
creased his  desire  to  possess  her,  and  he  determined, 
as  she  was  not  to  be  had  by  fair  means,  to  have  her 
by  foul.  He  therefore  laid  a  wicked  plot  for  her 
capture. 

Marcus  Claudius,  one  of  his  clients,  instigated  by 
him,  seized  the  girl  as  she  entered  the  Forum,  claim- 
ing that  she  was  his  slave.  The  nurse  screamed  for 
help,  and  a  crowd  quickly  gathered.  Many  of  these 
well  knew  the  maiden,  her  father,  and  her  betrothed, 
and  vowed  to  protect  her  from  wrong.  But  the 
villain  declared  that  he  meant  no  harm,  and  that  he 
only  claimed  his  own,  and  was  quite  willing  to  submit 
his  claim  to  the  decision  of  the  law. 

Followed  by  the  crowd,  he  led  the  weeping  maiden 
to  where  Appius  Claudius  occupied  the  judgment- 
seat,  and  demanded  justice  at  his  hands.  He  de- 
clared that  the  wife  of  Virginius,  being  childless, 


THE   SACRIFICE   OF   VIRGINIA.  79 

had  got  this  child  from  its  mother  and  presented 
it  to  Virginius  as  her  own,  and  said  that  the  reai 
mother  had  been  his  slave,  and  that,  therefore,  the 
daughter  was  his  slave  also.  This  he  would  prove 
to  Virginius  on  his  return  to  Korne.  Meanwhile  it 
was  but  just  that  the  master  should  keep  possession 
of  his  slave. 

This  specious  appeal  was  earnestly  combated  by 
the  friends  of  the  maiden,  many  of  whom  were 
present  in  the  throng.  Virginius,  they  said,  was 
absent  from  Eome  in  the  service  of  the  common- 
wealth. To  take  such  action  in  his  absence  was  un- 
just. They  would  send  him  word  at  once,  and  in 
two  days  he  would  be  in  the  city. 

"Let  the  case  stand  until  he  can  appear,"  they 
demanded.  "The  law  expressly  declares  that  in 
cases  like  this  every  one  shall  be  considered  free  till 
proved  a  slave.  The  maiden,  therefore,  should  legally 
be  left  with  her  friends  till  the  day  of  trial.  Put  not 
her  fair  fame  in  peril  by  giving  up  a  free-born 
maiden  into  the  hands  of  a  man  whom  she  knows 
not." 

To  this  reasonable  appeal  Appius,  with  a  show  of 
judicial  moderation,  replied, — 

"  Truly,  I  know  the  law  you  speak  of,  and  hold  it 
just  and  good,  for  it  was  enacted  by  myself.  But 
this  maiden  cannot  in  any  case  be  free ;  she  belongs 
either  to  her  father  or  to  her  master.  And  as  her 
father  is  not  here,  who  but  her  master  can  have  any 
claim  to  her  ?  I  decide,  therefore,  that  M.  Claudius 
shall  keep  her  till  Virginius  comes,  and  shall  require 
him  to  give  sureties  to  bring  her  before  my  judgment- 


80  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

seat  when  the  day  comes  for  hearing  the  case  be- 
tween them." 

This  illegal  decision  was  far  from  satisfying  the 
multitude.  The  decemvirs  and  their  adherents  had 
gained  an  unholy  reputation  for  dishonorable  treat- 
ment of  the  wives  and  daughters  of  the  people,  and 
it  was  not  safe  to  trust  a  maiden  in  their  hands. 
Word  had  been  hastily  sent  to  Numitorius,  the  uncle 
of  Virginia,  and  Icilius,  her  betrothed,  and  they  now 
came  up  in  great  haste,  and  protested  so  vigorously 
against  the  sentence,  that  the  surrounding  people 
became  roused  to  fury.  Appius,  seeing  the  temper 
of  the  throng,  and  fearing  a  riotous  demonstration, 
felt  forced  to  change  his  decision.  He  said,  there- 
fore, that,  in  view  of  the  rights  of  fathers  over  their 
children,  he  would  let  the  case  rest  till  the  next 
day. 

"  If,  then,"  he  said,  with  a  show  of  stern  dignity, 
"  Virginius  does  not  appear,  I  plainly  tell  Icilius  and 
his  fellows  that  I  will  support  the  laws  which  I  have 
made.  Violence  shall  not  prevail  over  justice  at  this 
tribunal." 

Obliged  to  be  content  with  this,  the  friends  of 
Virginia  conducted  her  home,  and  Icilius  sent  mes- 
sengers in  all  haste  to  the  camp,  to  bid  Virginius 
come  without  an  hour's  delay  to  Home.  Surety 
was  given  that  the  maiden  should  appear  before 
Appius  the  next  day. 

It  was  fortunate  that  the  army  in  which  Virginius 
was  a  centurion  had  been  obliged  to  retreat,  and 
then  lay  not  many  miles  from  Borne.  The  messen- 
gers sent  reached  the  camp  that  same  evening,  and 


THE   SACRIFICE   OP   VIRGINIA.  81 

told  Virginius  of  the  peril  of  his  daughter.  Appius 
had  also  sent  messengers  to  his  colleagues  in  com- 
mand of  the  army,  secretly  instructing  them  not  to 
let  Virginius  leave  the  camp  on  any  pretence.  But 
the  messengers  of  right  outstripped  those  of  wrong, 
and  when  word  came  from  the  decemvirs  in  com- 
mand to  restrain  Virginius  he  had  already  been 
given  leave  of  absence,  and  was  speeding  on  the  road 
to  Eome,  spurred  by  love  and  indignation. 

Morning  came,  and  Appius  resumed  his  judgment- 
seat,  under  the  delusion  that  his  vile  scheme  was 
safe.  To  his  surprise  and  dismay,  he  saw  Virginius, 
whom  he  supposed  detained  in  camp,  dressed  in 
mean  attire,  like  a  suppliant,  and  leading  his  daugh- 
ter into  the  Forum.  With  him  came  a  body  of 
Roman  matrons  and  a  great  troop  of  friends,  for 
the  affair  had  roused  the  people  almost  to  the  point 
of  revolt. 

"  This  is  not  my  cause  only,  but  the  cause  of  all," 
said  Virginius,  in  moving  accents,  to  the  people.  "  If 
my  daughter  shall  be  robbed  from  me,  what  father 
and  mother  among  you  all  is  safe  ?" 

Icilius  earnestly  seconded  this  appeal,  and  the 
mothers  who  stood  by  wept  with  pity,  their  tears 
moving  the  people  even  more  than  the  words  of  the 
father  and  lover. 

But  Appius  was  not  to  be  moved  by  tears  or  ap- 
peals. Bent  on  gaining  his  unholy  ends,  he  did  not 
even  give  Virginius  time  to  address  the  tribunal,  but 
before  Claudius  had  done  speaking  be  hastened  to 
give  sentence.  The  maiden,  he  said,  should  be  con- 
sidered a  slave  until  proved  to  be  free-born.  In  the 
n— / 


82  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

mean  time  she  should  remain  in  the  custody  of  her 
master  Claudius. 

This  monstrous  decision,  a  perversion  of  all  law, 
natural  and  civil,  filled  the  people  with  astonish- 
ment. Could  the  maker  of  the  laws  of  Rome  thus 
himself  set  them  at  defiance?  They  stood  as  if 
stunned,  until  Claudius  approached  to  lay  hands  on 
the  maiden,  when  the  women  and  her  friends  gath- 
ered around  her  and  kept  him  off,  while  Virginius 
broke  out  in  passionate  threats  that  he  would  not 
tamely  submit  to  so  great  a  wrong. 

Appius  had  prepared  for  this.  He  had  brought 
with  him  a  body  of  armed  patricians,  and,  supported 
by  them,  he  bade  his  lictors  to  drive  back  the  crowd. 
Before  their  threatening  axes  the  unarmed  people 
fell  back,  and  the  weeping  maiden  was  left  standing 
alone.  Virginius  looked  on  in  despair.  Was  he  to 
be  robbed  of  his  daughter  in  the  face  of  Rome,  and 
in  defiance  of  all  justice  and  honor?  There  was  one 
way  still  to  save  her,  and  only  one. 

With  an  aspect  of  humility  he  asked  Appius  to 
let  him  speak  one  word  to  the  nurse  in  the  maiden's 
hearing,  that  he  might  learn  whether  she  were  really 
his  child  or  not.  "  If  I  am  not  indeed  her  father,  I 
shall  bear  her  loss  the  lighter,"  he  said. 

Appius,  with  a  show  of  moderation,  consented,  and 
the  distracted  father  drew  the  nurse  and  his  daugh- 
ter aside  to  a  spot  where  stood  some  butchers' 
booths,  for  the  Forum  of  Rome  was  then  a  place  of 
trade  as  well  as  of  justice.  Here  he  snatched  a  knife 
from  a  butcher,  and,  holding  the  poor  girl  in  his 
arm,  he  cried,  "  This  is  the  only  way,  my  child,  to 


THE   SACRIFICE   OF   VIRGINIA.  83 

keep  thee  free,"  and  plunged  the  weapon  to  her 
heart. 

Then,  turning  to  Appius,  he  cried,  in  threatening 
accents,  "  On  you  and  on  your  head  be  the  curse  of 
this  blood !" 

"  Seize  the  madman !"  yelled  Appius. 

But,  brandishing  the  bloody  knife,  Virginius  broke 
through  the  multitude,  which  readily  made  way  for 
his  passage,  and  flew  to  the  city  gates,  where,  seizing 
a  horse,  he  rode  with  wild  haste  to  the  camp  of  Tus- 
culum. 

Meanwhile  Icilius  and  Numitorius  held  up  the 
maiden's  body,  and  bade  the  people  see  the  bloody 
result  of  the  decemvir's  unholy  purpose.  A  tumult 
instantly  arose,  the  people  rushing  in  such  fury  upon 
the  tribunal  that  the  lictors  and  armed  patricians 
were  driven  back,  and  Appius,  stricken  with  fear, 
covered  his  face  with  his  robe  and  fled  into  a  neigh- 
boring house. 

Never  had  Kome  been  so  stirred  to  fury.  The 
colleague  of  Appius  rushed  with  his  followers  to  the 
Forum,  but  the  people  were  too  strong  for  all  the 
force  he  could  gather.  The  senate  met,  but  could  do 
nothing  in  the  excited  state  of  public  feeling.  An  at- 
tempt to  support  the  decemvirs  now  might  cause  the 
commons  once  more  to  secede  to  the  Sacred  Hill. 

While  this  was  going  on  in  the  city,  Virginius, 
followed  by  many  citizens,  had  reached  the  camp. 
Here  the  encrimsoned  knife  he  held,  the  blood  on  his 
face  and  body,  and  the  many  unarmed  citizens  who 
followed  him,  brought  the  soldiers  crowding  round 
to  learn  what  all  this  meant. 


84  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

The  tale  was  told  in  moving  accents.  On  hearing 
it  the  whole  army  burst  into  a  storm  of  indignation. 
Heedless  of  the  orders  of  their  generals,  they  rushed 
excitedly  to  arms,  pulled  up  their  standards,  and  put 
themselves  in  hasty  march  for  Eome.  The  only 
leader  they  recognized  was  Virginius,  who,  knife  in 
hand,  led  the  way  in  the  van. 

Reaching  the  city,  the  soldiers  called  on  the  com- 
mons to  assert  their  liberties  and  elect  new  tribunes, 
the  decemvirs  having  deprived  them  of  these  offi- 
cials. They  then  marched  to  the  Aventine  Hill, 
where  they  selected  ten  military  tribunes.  The 
senate  sent  to  them  to  know  what  they  wanted, 
but  they  replied  that  they  had  no  answer  to  give 
except  to  their  own  friends. 

The  other  army  had  also  heard  of  the  outrage,  and 
soon  appeared  at  the  Aventine,  led  by  Icilius  and 
Numitorius,  who  had  hastened  with  the  dreadful 
story  to  its  camp.  It,  too,  elected  ten  tribunes,  and 
waited  to  hear  what  the  senate  had  to  propose. 
They  waited  in  vain.  No  word  came  to  them.  The 
senate,  distracted  by  the  sudden  occurrence,  sought 
to  temporize,  but  the  people  were  in  too  deadly 
earnest  to  be  thus  dealt  with.  In  the  end  the  ar- 
mies left  the  Aventine,  marched  through  the  city, 
and  made  their  way  to  the  Sacred  Hill,  where  the 
seceding  commoners  had  established  themselves  on 
a  famous  occasion  long  before.  Men,  women,  and 
children  followed  them  in  multitudes.  Once  more 
the  city  was  deserted  by  the  plebeians,  and  the  patri- 
cians were  left  to  keep  Rome  together  as  they  could. 

This  brought  the  senate  to  terms.    The  decemvirs 


THE   SACRIFICE   OF  VIRGINIA.  85 

agreed  to  resign.  Deputies  were  sent  to  ask  what 
the  people  demanded.  They  replied  that  they 
wanted  their  tribunes  and  the  right  of  appeal  re- 
stored, full  indemnity  for  all  the  leaders  in  the 
secession,  and  the  punishment  of  their  oppressors. 

"These  decemvirs,"  said  Icilius,  "are  public  ene- 
mies, and  we  will  have  them  die  the  death  of  such. 
Give  them  up  to  us,  that  they  may  be  burnt  with 
fire,  as  they  have  richly  deserved." 

This  bloodthirsty  desire,  however,  was  not  insisted 
on.  All  their  other  requests  were  granted,  and  the 
people  returned  to  Eome.  The  decemvirs  had  re- 
signed. Ten  tribunes  were  chosen,  among  them  Vir- 
ginius  and  Icilius.  The  people  of  Eome  had  regained 
the  liberty  of  which  they  had  been  robbed  by  their 
late  oppressors. 

But  though  the  decemvirs  had  been  spared  from 
death  by  fire,  they  were  not  forgiven.  Vir^inius, 
as  a  tribune,  impeached  Appius  for  having  given  a 
decision  in  defiance  of  the  law.  The  proud  patrician 
appeared  in  the  Forum  surrounded  by  a  body  of 
young  nobles,  but  he  gained  nothing  by  this  bravado. 
He  refused  to  go  before  the  judge,  appealed  to  the 
people,  and  demanded  to  be  released  on  bail.  This 
Virginius  refused.  He  could  not  be  trusted  at 
liberty.  He  was  therefore  thrown  into  prison,  to 
await  the  judgment  of  the  people. 

This  judgment  he  did  not  live  to  hear.  Whether 
he  killed  himself  in  prison,  or  was  killed  by  order  of 
his  accusers,  we  do  not  know.  We  only  know  that 
he  died.  His  colleague,  who  had  come  to  his  aid  on 
that  fatal  day,  was  also  thrown  into  prison,  on  the 


86  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

charge  of  having  wantonly  scourged  an  old  and  dis- 
tinguished soldier.  He  also  died  there.  The  other 
decemvirs,  with  M.  Claudius,  who  had  claimed  Vir- 
ginia as  his  slave,  were  allowed  to  give  bail,  and  all 
fled  from  Eome.  The  property  of  all  of  them  was 
confiscated  and  sold. 

Eome  had  experienced  enough  of  decemvirate  rule. 
The  tribunes  of  the  people  were  restored,  and  there- 
after they  were  both  freely  chosen  by  the  people, 
which  had  not  been  the  case  before. 

And  thus  it  was  that  Virginia  was  revenged  and 
justice  once  more  reigned  in  Rome. 


CAMILLUS  AT  THE  SIEGE  OF 
VEIL 

WE  have  now  to  tell  the  story  of  another  dictator 
of  Rome.  Like  Cincinnatus,  Camillus  is  largely  a 
creature  of  legend,  but  he  plays  an  active  part  in  old 
Roman  annals,  and  the  tale  of  his  doings  is  well 
worth  repeating. 

Rome  was  at  war  with  the  city  of  Veii,  a  large 
and  strong  city  beyond  the  Tiber,  and  not  many 
miles  away.  In  the  year  of  Rome  350  (or  403  B.C.) 
the  siege  of  Veii  began,  and  was  continued  for  seven 
years.  We  are  told  that  the  Romans  surrounded  the 
city,  five  miles  in  circumference,  with  a  double  wall, 
but  it  could  not  have  been  complete,  or  the  Veien- 
tians  could  not  have  held  out  against  starvation  so 
long.  For  the  end  of  the  siege  and  the  taking  of 
the  city  we  must  revert  to  the  legendary  tale. 

For  seven  years  and  more,  so  the  legend  says,  the 
Romans  had  been  besieging  Veii.  During  the  last 
year  of  the  siege,  in  late  summer,  the  springs  and 
rivers  all  ran  low;  but  of  a  sudden  the  waters  of  the 
Lake  of  Alba  began  to  rise,  and  the  flood  continued 
until  the  banks  were  overflowed  and  the  fields  and 
houses  by  its  side  were  drowned.  Still  higher  and 
higher  the  waters  swelled  till  they  reached  the  tops 
of  the  hills  which  rose  like  a  wall  around  the  Jake. 

87 


88  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

In  the  end  they  overflowed  these  hills  at  their  lowest 
points,  and  poured  in  a  mighty  torrent  into  the  plain 
beyond. 

The  prayers  and  sacrifices  of  the  Komans  haO 
failed  to  check  the  flood,  which  threatened  their  city 
and  fields,  and  despairing  of  any  redress  from  their 
own  gods  they  sent  to  Delphi,  in  Greece,  and  applied 
there  to  the  famous  oracle  of  Apollo.  While  the 
messengers  were  on  their  way,  it  chanced  that  a 
Eoman  centurion  talked  with  an  old  Veientian  on 
the  walls  whom  he  had  known  in  times  of  peace, 
and  knew  to  be  skilled  in  the  secrets  of  Fate.  The 
Roman  condoled  with  his  friend,  and  hoped  that  no 
harm  would  come  to  him  in  the  fall  of  Veii,  sure  to 
happen  soon.  The  old  man  laughed  in  reply,  and 
said, — 

"  You  think,  then,  to  take  Veii.  You  shall  not 
take  it  till  the  waters  of  the  Lake  of  Alba  are  all 
spent,  and  flow  out  into  the  sea  no  more." 

This  remark  troubled  the  Roman,  who  knew  the 
prophetic  foresight  of  his  friend.  The  next  day  he 
talked  with  him  again,  and  finally  enticed  him  to 
leave  the  city,  saying  that  he  wished  to  meet  him  at 
a  certain  secret  place  and  consult  with  him  on  a 
matter  of  his  own.  But  on  getting  him  in  this  way 
out  of  the  city,  he  seized  and  carried  him  oif  to  the 
camp,  where  he  brought  him  before  the  generals. 
These,  learning  what  the  old  man  had  said,  sent  him 
to  the  senate  at  Rome. 

The  prisoner  here  spoke  freely.  "If  the  lake 
overflow,"  he  said,  "  and  its  waters  run  out  into  the 
sea,  woe  unto  Rome;  but  if  it  be  drawn  off,  and  the 


CAMILLUS   AT   THE   SIEGE   OF   VEIL  89 

waters  reach  the  sea  no  longer,  then  it  is  woe  unto 
Yeii." 

This  he  gave  as  the  decree  of  the  Fates;  but  the 
senate  would  not  accept  his  words,  and  preferred  to 
wait  until  the  messengers  should  return  from  Delphi 
with  the  reply  of  the  oracle. 

When  they  did  come,  they  confirmed  what  the  old 
prophet  had  said.  "  See  that  the  waters  be  not  con- 
fined within  the  basin  of  the  lake,"  was  the  message 
of  Apollo's  priestess :  "  see  that  they  take  not  their 
own  course  and  run  into  the  sea.  Thou  shalt  take 
the  water  out  of  the  lake,  and  thou  shalt  turn  it  to 
the  watering  of  the  fields,  and  thou  shalt  make 
courses  for  it  till  it  be  spent  and  come  to  noth- 
ing." 

What  all  this  could  possibly  have  to  do  with  the 
siege  of  Veii  the  oracle  did  not  say.  But  the  people 
of  the  past  were  not  given  to  ask  such  inconvenient 
questions.  The  oracle  was  supposed  to  know  better 
than  they,  so  workmen  were  sent  with  orders  to 
bore  through  the  sides  of  the  hills  and  make  a  pass- 
age for  the  water.  This  tunnel  was  made,  and  the 
waters  of  the  lake  were  drawn  off,  and  divided  into 
many  courses,  being  given  the  duty  of  watering  the 
fields  of  the  Eomans.  In  this  way  the  water  of  the 
lake  was  all  used  up,  and  no  drop  of  it  flowed  to  the 
sea.  Then  the  Eomans  knew  that  it  was  the  will 
of  the  gods  that  Veii  should  be  theirs. 

Despite  all  this,  the  army  of  Rome  must  have  met 

with  serious  difficulties  and  dangers  at  Veii,  for  the 

senate  chose  a  dictator  to  conduct  the  war.     This 

was   their  ablest   and    most    famous  man,    Marcus 

8* 


90  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Furius  Camillas,  a  leader  among  the  aristocrats,  and 
a  statesman  of  distinguished  ability. 

Under  the  command  of  Camillus  the  army  hotly 
pressed  the  siege.  So  straitened  became  the  Veien- 
tians  that  they  sent  envoys  to  Eome  to  beg  for 
peace.  The  senate  refused.  In  reply,  one  of  the 
chief  men  of  the  embassy,  -who  was  a  skilled  prophet, 
rebuked  the  "Romans  for  their  arrogance,  and  pre- 
dicted coming  retribution. 

"  You  heed  neither  the  wrath  of  the  gods  nor  the 
vengeance  of  men,"  he  said.  "  Yet  the  gods  shall  re- 
quite you  for  j'our  pride ;  as  you  destroy  our  country, 
so  shall  you  shortly  after  lose  your  own." 

This  prediction  was  verified  before  many  years  in 
the  invasion  of  the  Gauls  and  the  destruction  of 
Rome, — a  tale  which  we  have  next  to  tell. 

Camillus,  finding  that  Veii  was  not  to  be  taken 
by  assault  over  its  walls,  began  to  approach  it  from 
below.  Men  were  set  to  dig  an  underground  tunnel, 
which  should  pass  beneath  the  walls,  and  come  to 
the  surface  again  in  the  Temple  of  Juno,  which 
stood  in  the  citadel  of  Yeii.  Night  and  day  they 
worked,  and  the  tunnel  was  in  course  of  time  com- 
pleted,  though  the  ground  was  not  opened  at  its  inner 
extremity. 

Then  many  Romans  came  to  the  camp  through 
desire  to  have  a  share  in  the  spoil  of  Veii.  A  tenth 
part  of  this  spoil  was  vowed  by  Camillus  to  Apollo, 
in  reward  for  his  oracle ;  and  the  dictator  also 
prayed  to  Juno,  the  goddess  of  Veii,  begging  her  to 
desert  this  city  and  follow  the  Romans  home,  where 
a  temple  worthy  of  her  dignity  should  be  built. 


CAMILLUS   AT   THE  SIEGE   OP  VEIL  91 

All  being  ready,  a  fierce  assault  was  made  on  the 
city  from  every  side.  The  defenders  ran  to  the  walls 
to  repel  their  foes,  and  the  fight  went  vigorously  on. 
While  it  continued  the  king  of  Veii  repaired  to  the 
Temple  of  Juno,  where  he  offered  a  sacrifice  for  the 
deliverance  of  the  city.  The  prophet  who  stood 
by,  on  seeing  the  sacrifice,  said,  "  This  is  an  accepted 
offering.  There  is  victory  for  him  who  offers  the  en- 
trails of  this  victim  upon  the  altar." 

The  Romans  who  were  in  the  secret  passage  below 
heard  these  words.  Instantly  the  earth  was  heaved 
up  above  them,  and  they  sprang,  arms  in  hand,  from 
the  tunnel.  The  entrails  were  snatched  from  the 
hands  of  those  who  were  sacrificing,  and  Camillus, 
the  Roman  dictator,  not  the  Veientian  king,  offered 
them  upon  the  altar.  While  he  did  so  his  followers 
rushed  from  the  citadel  into  the  streets,  flung  open 
the  city  gates,  and  let  in  their  comrades.  Thus  both 
from  within  and  without  the  army  broke  into  the 
town,  and  Veii  was  taken  and  sacked. 

From  the  height  of  the  citadel  Camillus  looked 
down  upon  the  havoc  in  the  city  streets,  and  said  in 
pride  of  heart,  "  What  man's  fortune  was  ever  so 
great  as  mine?"  But  instantly  the  thought  came  to 
him  how  little  a  thing  can  bring  the  highest  fort- 
une down  to  the  lowest,  and  he  prayed  that  if  some 
evil  should  befall  him  or  his  country  it  might  be 
light. 

As  he  prayed  he  veiled  his  head,  according  to  the 
Roman  custom,  and  turned  toward  the  right.  In 
doing  so  his  foot  slipped,  and  he  fell  upon  his  back 
on  the  ground.  "  The  gods  have  heard  my  prayer," 


92  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

he  said.  "  For  the  great  fortune  of  my  victory  over 
Veii  they  have  sent  me  only  this  little  evil." 

He  then  bade  some  young  men,  chosen  from  the 
whole  army,  to  wash  themselves  in  pure  water,  and 
clothe  themselves  in  white,  so  that  there  would  be 
about  them  no  stain  or  sign  of  blood.  This  done, 
they  entered  the  Temple  of  Juno,  bowing  low,  and 
taking  care  not  to  touch  the  statue  of  the  goddess, 
which  only  the  priest  could  touch.  They  asked  the 
goddess  whether  it  was  her  pleasure  to  go  with  them 
to  Rome. 

Then  a  wonder  happened ;  from  the  mouth  of  the 
image  came  the  words  "  I  will  go."  And  when  they 
now  touched  it,  it  moved  of  its  own  accord.  It  was 
carried  to  Rome,  where  a  temple  was  built  and  con- 
secrated to  Juno  on  the  Aventine  Hill. 

On  his  return  to  Rome  Camillas  entered  the  city 
in  triumph,  and  rode  to  the  Capitol  in  a  chariot 
drawn  by  four  white  horses,  like  the  horses  of  Jupiter 
or  those  of  the  sun.  Such  was  his  ostentation  that 
wise  men  shook  their  heads.  "  Marcus  Camillus 
makes  himself  equal  to  the  blessed  gods,"  they  said. 
"  See  if  vengeance  come  not  on  him,  and  he  be  not 
made  lower  than  other  men." 

There  is  one  further  legend  about  Camillus.  After 
the  fall  of  Veii  he  besieged  Falerii.  During  this 
siege  a  school-master,  who  had  charge  of  the  sons  of 
the  principal  citizens,  while  walking  with  his  boys 
outside  the  walls,  played  the  traitor  and  led  them 
into  the  Roman  camp. 

But  the  villain  received  an  unexpected  reward. 
Camillus,  justly  indignant  at  the  act,  put  thongs  iu 


CAMILLUS   AT   THE   SIEGE   OF   VEIL  93 

the  boys'  hands  and  bade  them  flog  their  master  back 
into  the  town,  saying  that  the  Eomans  did  not  war 
on  children.  On  this  the  people  of  Falerii,  overcome 
by  his  magnanimity,  surrendered  themselves,  their 
city,  and  their  country  into  the  hands  of  this  gener- 
ous foe,  assured  of  just  treatment  from  so  noble  a 
man. 

But  trouble  came  upon  Camillus,  as  the  wise  men 
had  predicted.  He  was  an  enemy  of  the  commons 
and  was  to  feel  their  power.  It  was  claimed  that 
he  had  kept  for  himself  part  of  the  plunder  of  Yeii, 
and  on  this  charge  he  was  banished  from  Rome. 
But  the  time  was  near  at  hand  when  his  foes  would 
have  to  pray  for  his  return.  The  next  year  the 
Gauls  were  to  come,  and  Camillus  was  to  be  re- 
venged upon  his  ungrateful  country.  This  story 
we  have  next  to  tell. 


THE   GAULS  AT  ROME. 

WE  have  related  in  the  preceding  tale  how  a 
Veientian  prophet  predicted  the  ruin  of  Rome,  in 
retribution  for  the  cruelty  of  the  Romans  to  the 
people  of  Veii.  It  is  the  story  of  this  disaster 
which  we  have  now  to  tell.  While  the  Romans 
were  assailing  Veii  and  making  other  conquests 
among  the  neighboring  cities,  a  new  people  had 
come  into  Central  Italy,  a  fair-faced,  light-haired, 
great- bodied  tribe  of  barbarians,  fierce  in  aspect, 
warlike  in  character,  the  first  contingent  of  that 
great  invasion  from  the  north  which,  centuries  after- 
wards, was  to  overthrow  the  empire  of  Rome. 

These  were  the  Gauls,  barbarian  tribes  from  the 
region  now  known  as  France,  who  had  long  before 
crossed  the  Alps  and  made  themselves  lords  of 
much  of  Northern  Italy.  Just  when  this  took  place 
we  do  not  know,  but  about  the  time  with  which  we 
are  now  concerned  they  pushed  farther  south,  over- 
threw the  Etruscans,  and  in  .the  year  389  B.C.  crossed 
the  Apennines  and  penetrated  into  Central  Italy. 

And  now  the  proud  city  of  Rome  was  to  come 
face  to  face  with  an  enemy  more  powerful  and  cour- 
ageous than  any  it  had  hitherto  known.  In  the 
year  named  the  Gauls  besieged  the  city  of  Clusium, 
94 


THE   GAULS   AT   ROME.  95 

in  Eiruria,  the  city  of  Lars  Porsenna,  who  in  former 
years  had  aided  Tarquin  against  Rome.  The  Roman 
senate,  alarmed  at  their  approach,  sent  three  depu- 
ties to  observe  these  barbarian  bands.  What  follows 
is  the  story  as  told  in  Roman  annals.  It  cannot  be 
accepted  as  the  exact  truth,  though  no  one  questions 
the  destruction  of  Rome  by  the  Gauls. 

The  story  goes,  then,  that  the  deputies  sent  to 
the  barbarians,  and  asked  by  what  right  they  sought 
to  take  a  part  of  the  territory  of  Clusium,  a  city  in 
alliance  with  Rome.  Brennus,  the  leader  of  the 
Gauls,  who  knew  little  and  cared  less  about  Rome, 
replied,  with  insolent  pride,  that  all  things  be- 
longed to  the  brave,  and  that  their  right  lay  in 
their  swords. 

Soon  after,  in  a  sortie  that  was  made  from  the 
city,  one  of  the  Roman  deputies  joined  the  soldiers, 
and  killed  a  Gaulish  champion  of  great  size  and 
stature.  On  this  being  reported  to  Brennus  he  sent 
messengers  to  Rome,  demanding  that  the  man  who 
had  slain  one  of  his  chiefs,  when  no  war  existed  be- 
tween the  Gauls  and  Romans,  should  be  delivered 
into  his  hands  for  punishment.  The  senate  voted 
to  do  so,  as  the  demand  seemed  reasonable ;  but  an 
appeal  was  made  to  the  people,  and  they  declared 
that  the  culprit  should  not  be  given  up.  On  this 
answer  being  taken  to  Brennus,  he  at  once  ordered 
that  the  siege  of  Clusium  should  be  abandoned,  and 
marched  with  his  whole  army  upon  Rome. 

A  Roman  army,  forty  thousand  strong,  was  hastily 
raised,  and  crossed  the  Tiber,  marching  towards  Yeii, 
where  they  expected  to  meet  the  advancing  enemy. 


96  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

But  they  reckoned  wrongly:  the  Gauls  came  down 
the  left  bank  of  the  river,  plundering  and  burning 
as  they  marched.  This  threw  the  Romans  into  the 
greatest  alarm.  For  many  miles  above  Rome  the 
Tiber  could  not  be  forded,  there  were  no  bridges, 
and  boats  could  not  be  had  to  convey  so  large  an 
army.  The  Romans  were  forced  to  march  back 
with  all  speed  to  the  city,  cross  the  river  there,  and 
hasten  to  meet  their  foes  before  they  got  too  near 
at  hand.  But  when  they  came  within  sight  of  the 
Gauls  the  latter  were  already  within  twelve  miles 
of  Rome. 

The  Roman  army  was  drawn  up  behind  the  Alia, 
a  little  stream  whose  deep  bed  formed  a  line  of 
defence.  But  the  Gauls  made  their  attack  upon  the 
weakest  section  of  the  Roman  army,  hewing  them 
down  with  their  great  broadswords,  and  assailing 
their  ears  with  frightful  yells.  The  Roman  right 
wing,  formed  of  new  recruits,  gave  way  before  this 
vigorous  charge,  and  in  its  flight  threw  the  regular 
legions  of  the  left  wing  into  disorder.  The  Gauls 
pursued  so  fiercely  that  in  a  short  time  the  whole 
army  was  in  total  rout,  and  flying  as  Roman  army 
had  never  fled  before. 

Many  plunged  into  the  river,  in  hope  of  escaping 
by  swimming  across  it.  But  of  these  the  Gauls 
slew  multitudes  on  the  banks,  and  killed  most  of 
those  in  the  stream  with  their  javelins.  Others  took 
refuge  in  a  dense  wood  near  the  road,  where  they 
lay  hidden  till  nightfall.  The  remainder  fled  back 
to  the  city,  where  they  brought  the  frightful  tidings 
of  the  utter  ruin  of  the  Roman  army. 


THE   GAULS   AT   ROME.  97 

The  news  threw  Rome  into  a  panic.  Of  those 
who  escaped  from  the  battle,  the  majority  had 
crossed  the  river  and  made  their  way  to  Veii.  No 
other  army  could  be  raised.  Most  of  the  other  in- 
habitants left  the  city,  as  the  people  of  Athens  had 
done  when  the  army  of  Xerxes  approached.  It  was 
resolved  to  abandon  the  city  to  the  barbarians,  but 
to  maintain  the  citadel,  the  home  of  the  gods  of 
Rome.  The  holy  articles  in  the  temples  were  buried 
or  removed,  the  Vestal  Virgins  sent  away,  and  the 
flower  of  the  patricians  took  refuge  in  the  Capitol, 
determined  to  defend  to  the  last  that  abiding-place 
of  the  guardian  gods  of  Rome. 

But  there  were  aged  members  of  the  senate,  old 
patricians  who  had  filled  the  highest  offices  in  the 
state,  and  venerable  ministers  of  the  gods,  who  felt 
that  they  had  a  different  duty  to  perform.  They 
could  not  serve  their  country  by  their  deeds ;  they 
might  by  their  death.  They  devoted  themselves  and 
the  army  of  the  Gauls,  in  solemn  invocations,  to  the 
spirits  of  the  dead  and  to  the  earth,  the  common 
grave  of  man.  Then,  attiring  themselves  in  their 
richest  robes  of  office,  each  took  his  seat  on  his  ivory 
<jhair  of  magistracy  in  the  gate-way  of  his  house. 

Meanwhile  the  Gauls  had  delayed  for  a  day  their 
attack  on  the  city,  fearing  that  the  silence  portended 
some  snare.  When  they  did  enter,  the  people  had 
escaped  with  such  valuables  as  they  could  carry.  The 
Capitol  was  provisioned  and  garrisoned,  and  the  aged 
senators  awaited  death  in  solemn  calm. 

On  seeing  these  venerable  men,  sitting  in  motion- 
less silence  amid  the  confusion  of  the  sack  of  the 
ii.—  E  g  9 


98  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

city,  the  Gauls  viewed  them  with  awe,  regarding 
them  at  first  as  more  than  human.  One  of  the 
soldiers  approached  M.  Papirius,  and  began  rever- 
ently to  stroke  his  long  white  beard.  Papirius  was 
a  minister  of  the  gods,  and  looked  on  this  touch 
of  a  barbarian  hand  as  profanation.  With  an  im- 
pulse of  anger  he  struck  the  Gaul  on  the  head  with 
his  ivory  sceptre.  Instantly  the  barbarian,  breaking 
into  rage,  cut  him  down  with  his  sword.  This  put 
an  end  to  the  feeling  of  awe.  All  the  old  men  were 
attacked  and  slain,  their  vow  being  thus  fulfilled. 

Rome,  except  its  Capitol,  was  now  in  the  hands 
of  the  Gauls.  The  sack  and  ruin  of  the  city  went 
mercilessly  on.  But  the  Capitol  defied  their  efforts. 
It  stood  on  a  hill  which,  except  at  a  single  point, 
presented  precipitous  sides.  The  Gauls  tried  to 
storm  it  by  this  single  approach,  but  were  driven 
back  with  loss.  They  then  blockaded  the  hill,  and 
spent  their  time  in  devastating  the  city  and  neigh- 
boring country. 

While  this  was  going  on  the  fugitives  from  Rome 
had  gathered  at  Veii,  where  they  daily  became  more 
reorganized.  And  now  they  turned  in  their  distress 
to  a  man  whom  they  had  injured  in  their  prosperity. 
Camillus,  the  conqueror  of  Veii,  had  been  exiled 
from  Rome  on  a  charge  of  having  been  dishonest  in 
distributing  the  spoils  of  the  conquered  city.  He 
was  now  living  at  Ardea,  whither  messengers  were 
sent,  begging  him  to  come  to  the  aid  of  Rome.  He 
sent  word  back  that  he  had  been  condemned  for  an 
offence  of  which  he  was  not  guilty,  and  would  not 
return  unless  requested  to  do  so  by  the  senate. 


THE   GAULS  AT  ROME.  99 

But  the  senate  was  shut  up  in  the  Capitol.  How 
could  it  be  reached  ?  In  this  dilemma  a  young  man, 
Pontius  Cominius,  volunteered  for  the  adventure. 
He  swam  the  Tiber  at  night,  climbed  the  hill  by  the 
aid  of  shrubs  and  projecting  stones,  obtained  for 
Camillus  the  appointment  as  dictator,  and  returned 
by  the  same  route. 

The  feat  of  Cominius,  whatever  its  real  purpose, 
came  near  being  a  fatal  one  to  Rome.  He  had  left 
his  marks  on  the  cliff.  Here  the  soil  had  been 
trodden  away  and  stones  loosened ;  there  bushes  had 
been  broken  or  torn  from  the  soil.  The  sharp  eyes 
of  the  Gauls  saw,  in  the  morning  light,  these  proofs 
that  some  one  had  climbed  or  descended  the  hill. 
The  cliff,  then,  could  be  climbed.  Some  Eoman  had 
climbed  it ;  why  not  they  ?  The  spot,  supposed  to 
be  inaccessible,  was  not  guarded.  There  was  no 
wall  at  its  top.  Here  was  an  open  route  to  that 
stubborn  citadel.  They  resolved  to  attempt  it  as 
soon  as  night  should  fall. 

It  was  midnight  when  the  Gauls  began  to  make 
their  way  slowly  and  with  difficulty  up  the  steep 
cliff.  The  moon  may  have  aided  them  with  its  rays, 
but,  if  so,  it  revealed  them  to  no  sentinel  above.  The 
very  watch-dogs  failed  to  scent  and  signal  their  ap- 
proach. They  reached  the  summit,  and,  to  their 
gratification,  no  alarm  had  been  given.  The  Romans 
slept  on. 

The  fate  of  Rome  in  that  hour  hung  in  the  bal- 
ance. Had  the  citadel  been  taken  and  its  defenders 
slain,  Rome  might  never  have  recovered  from  the 
blow.  The  whole  course  of  history  might  have  been 


100  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

changed.  It  was  the  merest  chance  that  saved  the 
city  from  this  impending  disaster. 

It  chanced  that  on  this  part  of  the  hill  stood  the 
temple  of  the  guardian  gods  of  Rome, — Jupiter,  Juno, 
and  Minerva, — and  in  this  temple  were  kept  a  number 
of  geese,  sacred  to  Juno.  Though  food  was  not  abun- 
dant, the  garrison  had  spared  these  sacred  geese. 
They  were  now  to  be  amply  repaid,  for  the  geese 
alone  heard  the  noise  of  the  ascending  Gauls,  and  in 
alarm  began  a  loud  screaming  and  flapping  of  wings. 

The  noise  aroused  Marcus  Manlius,  who  slept  near. 
Hastily  seizing  his  sword  and  shield,  he  called  to  his 
comrades  and  ran  to  the  edge  of  the  cliff.  He  reached 
there  just  in  time  to  see  the  head  and  shoulders  of  a 
burly  Gaul,  who  had  nearly  attained  the  summit. 
Dashing  the  rim  of  his  shield  into  the  face  of  the 
barbarian,  Manlius  tumbled  him  down  the  rock,  and 
with  him  those  who  followed  in  his  track.  The 
others,  dismayed,  dropped  their  arms  to  cling  more 
closely  to  the  rocks.  Unable  to  ascend  or  descend, 
they  were  easily  slaughtered  by  the  guards  who  fol- 
lowed Manlius.  The  Capitol  was  saved.  As  for  the 
captain  of  the  watch,  from  whose  neglect  of  duty 
this  peril  had  come,  he  was  punished  the  next  morn- 
ing by  being  hurled  down  the  cliff  upon  the  slaugh- 
tered Gauls. 

Manlius  was  rewarded,  says  the  story,  by  each 
man  giving  him  from  his  scanty  store  a  day's  allow- 
ance of  food, — namely,  half  a  pound  of  corn  and  five 
ounces  in  weight  of  wine.  As  for  the  real  defenders 
of  Rome,  the  geese  of  the  .Capitol,  they  were  ever 
after  held  in  the  highest  honor  and  veneration. 


THE   GAULS   AT  ROME.  101 

As  the  Capitol  could  not  be  taken  by  assault  or 
surprise,  there  remained  only  the  slow  process  of 
siege.  For  six  or  eight  months  the  Gauls  blockaded 
the  hill.  So  says  the  story,  but  it  was  probably  not 
so  long.  However,  in  the  end  the  Romans  were 
brought  to  the  point  of  famine,  and  offered  to  ran- 
som their  city  by  paying  a  large  sum  of  gold.  Bren- 
nus,  the  Gaulish  king,  was  ready  to  accept  the  offer. 
His  men  were  suffering  from  the  Roman  fever ;  food 
had  grown  scarce ;  he  agreed,  if  paid  a  thousand 
pounds'  weight  of  gold,  to  withdraw  his  army  from 
Rome. 

Much  gold  had  been  brought  by  the  fugitive 
patricians  into  the  Capitol.  From  this  the  dele- 
gates brought  down  and  placed  in  the  scales  a  suf- 
ficient quantity.  But  while  they  found  the  gold,  the 
Gauls  found  the  weights^  and  it  was  soon  discovered 
that  the  wily  barbarians  were  cheating.  Their 
weights  were  too  heavy.  Complaint  of  this  fraud 
was  made  by  the  Roman  tribune  of  the  soldiers.  In 
reply  Brennus  drew  his  heavy  broadsword  and  threw 
it  into  the  scale  with  the  weights. 

"  What  does  this  mean  ?"  asked  the  tribune. 

"It  means,"  answered  the  barbarian,  haughtily, 
"  woe  to  the  vanquished !"  "  Vce  victis  esse!" 

While  this  was  going  on,  says  the  legend,  Camil- 
lus,  the  dictator,  was  marching  to  Rome  with  the 
legions  he  had  organized  at  Veii.  He  appeared  at 
the  right  minute  for  the  dramatic  interest  of  the 
story,  entered  the  Forum  while  the  gold  was  being 
weighed,  bade  the  Romans  take  back  their  gold, 
threw  the  weights  to  the  Gauls,  and  told  Brennus 
9* 


102  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

proudly  that  it  was  the  Roman  custom  to  pay  their 
debts  in  iron,  not  in  gold. 

A  fight  ensued,  as  might  be  expected.  The  Gauls 
were  driven  from  the  city.  The  next  day  Camillus 
attacked  them  in  their  camp,  eight  miles  from  Rome, 
and  defeated  them  so  utterly  that  not  a  man  was 
left  alive  to  carry  home  the  tale  of  the  slaughter. 

This  story  of  the  coming  of  Camillus  is  too  much 
like  the  last  act  of  a  stage-play,  or  the  denouement 
of  a  novel,  to  be  true.  Most  likely  the  Gauls 
marched  off  with  their  gold,  though  they  may  have 
been  attacked  on  their  retreat,  and  most  or  all  of 
the  gold  regained. 

Camillus,  however,  is  said  to  have  saved  Rome  in 
still  another  way.  The  old  city  was  in  ashes.  Most 
of  the  citizens  were  at  Veii,  where  they  had  found 
or  built  new  homes.  They  were  loath  to  come  back 
to  rebuild  a  ruined  city.  This  Camillus  induced 
them  to  do.  Every  appeal  was  made  to  the  local 
pride  and  the  religious  sentiments  of  the  people.  A 
centurion,  marching  with  his  company,  and  being 
obliged  to  halt  in  front  of  the  senate-house,  called  to 
the  standard-bearer,  "  Pitch  your  standard  here,  for 
this  is  the  best  place  to  stop  at."  This  casual  re- 
mark was  looked  upon  as  an  omen  from  heaven,  and 
by  this  and  the  like  means  the  people  were  induced 
to  return. 

Then  the  rebuilding  of  Rome  began.  The  sites  of 
the  temples  were  retraced  as  far  as  could  be  done  in 
the  ruins.  The  laws  of  the  twelve  tables  and  some 
other  records  were  recovered,  but  the  mass  of  the 
historical  annals  of  Rome  had  been  destroyed.  Some 


THE   QAUL8   AT   ROME.  103 

relics  were  said  to  have  been  miraculously  pre- 
served, among  them  the  shepherd's  crook  of  Rom- 
ulus. 

But  the  bulk  of  the  possessions  of  the  Romans  had 
vanished  in  the  flames ;  the  streets  were  mere  heaps 
of  ashes ;  the  very  walls  had  been  in  part  pulled 
down ;  rubbish  and  ruin  lay  everywhere.  Eome,  like 
the  phoenix,  had  to  be  born  again  from  its  ashes. 
Men  built  wherever  they  could  find  a  clear  spot. 
Stones  and  roofing-material  were  brought  from  Veii, 
and  one  city  was  dismantled  that  another  might  be 
restored.  Stones  and  timber  were  supplied  to  any 
man  from  the  public  lands.  The  city  rapidly  rose 
again.  But  it  was  an  irregular  city;  the  streets  ran 
anywhere ;  no  effort  was  made  at  rule  or  system  in 
the  making  of  the  new  Rome. 

As  for  Camillus,  he  came  to  be  honored  as  the 
second  founder  of  Rome.  "While  the  Romans  were 
at  work  on  their  new  homes  they  were  harassed  by 
their  foes,  and  he  was  kept  busy  with  the  army  in 
the  field.  He  lived  for  twenty-five  years  longer, 
and  in  the  year  367  B.C.,  when  some  eighty  years  of 
age,  he  marched  again  to  meet  the  Gauls  in  a  new 
assault  upon  Rome,  and  defeated  them  with  such 
slaughter  that  they  left  Rome  alone  for  many  years 
afterwards. 

Marcus  Manlius,  the  preserver  of  the  Capitol,  was 
not  so  fortunate.  He  came  forward  as  the  patron 
of  the  poor,  who  began  to  suffer  again  from  the 
severe  laws  against  debtors.  Finally  he  began  to  use 
his  large  fortune  to  relieve  suffering  debtors,  and  is 
said  to  have  paid  the  debts  of  four  hundred  debtors, 


104  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

thus  saving  them  from  bondage.  This  generosity 
won  him  the  unbounded  affection  of  the  people,  who 
called  him  the  "  Father  of  the  Commons."  But  it 
aroused  the  suspicion  of  the  patricians,  and  some  of 
these,  against  whom  he  had  used  violent  language, 
had  him  arrested  on  a  charge  of  treason,  perhaps 
with  good  reason.  Though  he  showed  the  many 
honors  he  had  received  for  services  to  his  country, 
he  was  condemned  to  death  and  his  house  razed  to 
the  ground.  Thus  the  patricians  dealt  with  the 
benefactors  of  the  poor. 


THE    CURTIAN    GULF. 

DURING  three  years — 363  to  361  B.C. — Eome  was 
ravaged  by  the  plague,  which  was  so  violent  and 
fatal  as  to  carry  off  the  citizens  by  hundreds.  In 
its  first  year  it  found  a  noble  victim  in  Camillus, 
the  conqueror  of  Veil  and  the  second  founder  of 
Rome,  who  four  years  before  had  a  second  time  de- 
feated the  Gauls.  He  was  the  last  of  the  old  heroes 
of  Eome,  those  whose  glory  belongs  to  romance 
rather  than  history.  The  Gauls  had  destroyed  the 
records  of  old  Eome,  and  left  only  legend  and  ro- 
mance. With  the  new  Rome  history  fairly  began. 

But  we  have  another  romantic  tale  to  tell  before 
we  bid  adieu  to  the  story  of  early  Rome.  In  the 
second  year  of  the  pestilence  a  strange  and  porten- 
tous event  occurred.  The  Tiber  rose  to  an  unusual 
height,  overflowed  with  its  waters  the  great  circus 
(Circus  Maximus),  and  put  a  stop  to  the  games  then 
going  on,  which  were  intended  to  propitiate  the 
wrath  of  heaven,  and  induce  the  gods  to  relieve  man 
from  the  evil  of  the  plague. 

And  now,  in  the  midst  of  the  Forum,  there  yawned 
open  a  fearful  gulf,  so  wide  and  deep  that  the  super- 
stitious Romans  viewed  it  with  awe  and  affright. 
Whether  it  was  due  to  an  earthquake  or  the  wrath 
of  the  gods  is  not  for  us  to  say.  The  Romans  be- 
lieved the  latter ;  those  who  prefer  may  believe  the 

106 


106  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

former.  But,  so  we  are  told,  it  seemed  bottomless. 
Throw  what  they  would  in  it,  it  stood  unfilled,  and 
the  feeling  grew  that  no  power  of  man  could  ever 
fill  its  yawning  depths. 

Man  being  powerless,  the  oracles  of  the  gods  were 
consulted.  Must  this  gaping  wound  always  stand 
open  in  the  soil  of  Rome  ?  or  could  it  in  any  way  be 
filled  and  the  offended  deities  who  had  caused  it  be 
propitiated  ?  From  the  oracle  came  the  reply  that 
it  must  stand  open  till  that  which  constituted  the 
best  and  true  strength  of  the  Roman  commonwealth 
was  cast  as  an  offering  into  the  gulf.  Then  only 
would  it  close,  and  thereafter  forever  would  the  state 
live  and  flourish. 

The  true  strength  of  Rome!  In  what  did  this 
consist  ?  This  question  men  asked  each  other  anx- 
iously and  none  seemed  able  to  answer.  But  there 
was  one  man  in  Rome  who  interpreted  rightly  the 
meaning  of  the  oracle.  This  was  a  noble  youth, 
M.  Curtius  by  name,  who  had  played  his  part  val- 
iantly in  war,  and  gained  great  fame  by  brave  and 
manly  deeds.  The  true  strength  of  Rome  ?  he  said 
to  the  people.  In  what  else  could  it  lie  but  in  the 
arms  and  valor  of  her  children?  This  was  the 
sacrifice  the  gods  demanded. 

Going  home,  he  put  on  his  armor  and  mounted 
his  horse.  Riding  to  the  brink  of  the  gulf,  he,  be- 
fore the  eyes  of  the  trembling  and  awe-struck  mul- 
titude, devoted  himself  to  death  for  the  safety  and 
glory  of  Rome,  and  plunged,  with  his  horse,  head- 
long into  the  gaping  void.  The  people  rushed  after 
him  to  the  brink,  flung  in  their  offerings,  and  with  a 


THE   CURTIAN   GULF.  107 

surge  the  lips  of  the  gap  came  together,  and  the 
gulf  was  forever  closed.  The  place  was  afterwards 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Curtian  Lake,  in  honor 
of  this  sacrifice. 

There  are  two  other  stories  of  this  date  worth  re- 
peating, as  giving  rise  to  two  great  names  in  Home. 
T.  Manlius,  the  future  conqueror  of  the  Latins,  fought 
with  a  gigantic  Gaul  on  the  bridge  over  the  Anio  on 
the  Salarian  road.  Slaying  his  enemy,  he  took  from 
his  neck  a  chain  of  gold  (torques),  which  he  after- 
wards wore  upon  his  own.  From  this  the  soldiers 
called  him  Torquatus,  which  name  his  descendants 
ever  afterwards  bore. 

In  a  later  battle  Marcus  Valerius  fought  with  a 
second  gigantic  Gaul.  During  the  combat  a  won- 
derful thing  happened.  A  crow  perched  on  the 
helmet  of  the  Roman,  and  continued  there  as  the 
combatants  fought.  Occasionally  it  flew  up  into  the 
air,  and  darted  down  upon  the  Gaul,  striking  at  his 
eyes  with  its  beak  and  claws.  The  Gaul,  confounded 
by  this  attack,  soon  fell  by  the  sword  of  his  foe,  and 
then  the  crow  flew  up  again,  and  vanished  towards 
the  east.  The  name  of  Corvus  (crow)  was  added  to 
that  of  Valerius,  and  was  long  afterwards  borne  by 
his  descendants. 

These  stories  are  rather  to  be  enjoyed  than  be- 
lieved. They  probably  contain  more  poetry  than 
history,  particularly  that  of  Curtius  and  the  gulf. 
Yet  they  were  accepted  as  history  by  the  Romans, 
and  are  given  in  all  their  detail  in  the  fine  old  work 
of  Livy,  the  rarest  and  raciest  of  the  story-tellers  of 
Rome. 


ANECDOTES   OF  THE  LATIN 
AND   SAMNITE    WARS. 

THE  conquest  of  Italy  by  Eome  was  attended  by 
many  interesting  events,  of  which  we  propose  to 
relate  here  some  of  the  more  striking.  The  capture 
and  burning  of  Home  by  the  Gauls,  and  the  dispersal 
of  her  army  and  people,  ruinous  as  it  seemed,  was 
but  an  event  in  her  career  of  conquest.  The  city 
was  no  sooner  rebuilt  than  the  old  regime  of  war 
was  resumed,  and  it  was  no  longer  a  struggle  be- 
tween neighboring  cities,  but  of  Rome  against  pow- 
erful confederacies  and  peoples,  such  as  the  Volscians, 
the  Etruscans,  the  Latins,  the  Campanians,  and  the 
Samnites,  the  final  conquest  of  which  gave  her  the 
dominion  of  Italy. 

The  war  with  the  Latins  was  attended  with  some 
circumstances  showing  strongly  the  stern  and  in- 
domitable spirit  of  the  Romans.  This  war  was  car- 
ried into  Campania,  in  Southern  Italy ;  and  here,  on 
a  celebrated  occasion,  when  the  two  armies  lay  en- 
camped in  close  vicinity  on  the  plain  of  Capua,  the 
Roman  consuls  issued  a  strict  order  against  skir- 
mishing or  engaging  in  single  encounters  with  the 
enemy.  The  two  peoples  were  alike  in  arms  and  in 
language,  and  it  was  feared  that  such  chance  com- 
bats might  lead  to  confusion  and  disaster. 
108 


ANECDOTES   OF  THE   LATIN  AND   SAMNITE    WARS.       109 

The  only  man  to  disobey  this  order  was  T.  Man- 
lius,  the  son  of  one  of  the  consuls.  A  Latin  warrior, 
Geminus  Metius,  of  Tuseulum,  challenged  young  Man- 
lius  to  meet  him  in  single  combat;  and  the  youthful 
warrior,  fired  by  ambition  and  warlike  zeal,  and 
eager  to  sustain  the  honor  of  Eome,  accepted  the 
challenge,  despite  his  father's  order.  If  killed,  his 
fault  would  be  atoned ;  if  successful,  victory  over  a 
noted  warrior  must  win  him  pardon  and  praise. 

The  duel  that  ensued  was  a  fierce  and  gallant  one. 
It  ended  in  the  triumph  of  the  young  Roman,  who 
laid  his  antagonist  dead  at  his  feet.  Shouts  of 
triumph  from  the  Roman  soldiers  hailed  his  vic- 
tory; and  when  he  had  despoiled  his  slain  foe  of 
his  arms,  and  borne  them  triumphantly  from  the 
field,  the  exultation  of  the  Romans  was  as  unbounded 
as  the  chagrin  of  the  Latins  was  deep.  Towards  his 
father's  tent  the  young  victor  proudly  went,  through 
exulting  lines  of  troops,  and  laid  his  spoils  in  triumph 
at  the  feet  of  the  stern  old  man. 

The  poor  youth,  the  rejoicing  soldiers,  knew  not 
the  man  with  whom  they  had  to  deal.  A  military 
order  had  been  disobeyed.  To  old  Manlius  the  fact 
that  the  culprit  was  his  son,  and  that  he  had  added 
honor  to  the  Roman  arms,  weighed  nothing.  Dis- 
cipline stood  above  affection  or  victory.  Turning 
coldly  away,  the  iron-hearted  old  Roman  ordered 
that  the  soldiers  should  be  immediately  summoned 
to  the  prsetorium,  or  general's  tent,  and  that  his  son 
should  be  beheaded  before  them. 

This  cruel  and  inhuman  order  filled  the  whole 
army  with  horror.  Yet  none  dared  interfere,  and 
10 


110  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  unnatural  mandate  was  obeyed,  in  full  view  of 
an  army  whose  late  exultation  was  turned  to  deepest 
woe  and  indignation.  The  youngest  soldiers  never 
forgave  the  consul  for  his  inhuman  act,  but  regarded 
him  with  abhorrence  to  the  end  of  his  life.  But 
their  hatred  was  mingled  with  fear  and  respect,  and 
the  stern  lesson  taught  was  doubtless  felt  for  years 
in  the  discipline  of  the  armies  of  Rome. 

The  next  event  worthy  of  record  took  place  in 
the  vicinity  of  Mount  Vesuvius,  under  whose  very 
shadow  a  fierce  battle  was  fought  between  the  Latin 
and  Roman  armies,  with  the  then  silent  volcano  as 
witness.  Two  centuries  more  were  to  pass  before 
Rome  would  learn  what  fearful  power  lay  sleeping 
in  this  long  voiceless  mountain. 

Before  the  battle  joined,  the  gods,  as  usual,  were 
appealed  to.  During  the  night  both  consuls  had 
dreamed  the  same  dream.  A  figure  of  more  than 
human  stature  and  majesty  had  appeared  to  them, 
and  told  them  that  the  earth  and  the  gods  of  the 
dead  claimed  as  their  victims  the  general  of  one 
party  and  the  army  of  the  other.  When  the  sacri- 
fices were  made,  the  signs  given  by  the  entrails  of 
the  victims  signified  the  same  thing.  It  was  re- 
solved, therefore,  that  if  the  army  of  Rome  any- 
where gave  way,  the  general  commanding  on  that 
side  should  devote  himself,  and  the  army  of  the 
enemy  with  him,  to  the  gods  of  death  and  the  grave. 
"  Fate,"  said  the  augurs,  "  requires  the  sacrifice  of  a 
general  from  one  party  and  an  army  from  the  other. 
Let  it  be  our  general  and  the  Latin  army  that  shall 
perish." 


ANECDOTES  OP  THE  LATIN  AND  SAMNITE  WARS.     Ill 

It  was  the  left  wing  of  the  Romans,  commanded  by 
the  consul  Publius  Decius,  that  first  gave  way.  The 
consul  at  once  accepted  his  fate.  By  the  direction 
of  the  chief  priest,  he  wrapped  his  consular  toga 
around  his  head,  holding  it  to  his  face  with  his  hand, 
and  then  set  his  feet  upon  a  javelin,  and  repeated 
after  the  priest  the  words  devoting  him  to  the  gods 
of  death.  Then,  arming  himself  at  all  points,  and 
wrapping  his  toga  around  his  body  in  the  manner 
usual  in  sacrifices,  he  sprang  upon  his  horse,  and 
spurred  headlong  into  the  ranks  of  the  enemy,  where 
he  soon  fell  dead. 

This  sacrifice  filled  the  Romans  with  hope,  and  the 
Latins,  who  understood  its  meaning,  with  dismay. 
Yet  the  latter,  after  being  driven  back,  soon  recov- 
ered, and,  despite  the  self-devotion  of  Decius,  would 
probably  have  won  the  victory  had  not  the  remain- 
ing consul  brought  up  his  reserve  troops  just  in  time. 
In  the  end  the  Latins  were  utterly  defeated,  and 
Vesuvius  looked  down  on  the  massacre  of  one  army 
by  the  swords  of  another,  scarcely  a  fourth  of  the 
Latins  escaping.  Thus  the  gods  seemed  to  keep 
their  word,  though  probably  the  Roman  reserve 
force  had  more  to  do  with  the  victory  than  all  the 
gods  of  Rome. 

The  next  event  which  we  have  to  relate  took  place 
during  the  second  Samnite  war.  Its  hero  was  L. 
Papirius  Cursor,  one  of  the  favorite  heroes  of  Ro- 
man tradition,  and  the  avenger  of  the  disgrace  of 
the  Caudine  Forks,  the  story  of  which  we  have  next 
to  tell.  This  famous  soldier  is  said  to  have  possessed 
marvellous  swiftness  of  foot  and  gigantic  strength, 


112  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

with  extraordinary  capacity  for  food,  while  his  iron 
strictness  of  discipline  was  at  times  relieved  by  a 
rough  humor.  All  this  made  his  memory  popular 
with  the  Romans,  who  boasted  that  Alexander  the 
Great  would  have  found  in  him  a  worthy  champion, 
had  that  conqueror  invaded  Italy. 

The  event  we  have  now  to  narrate  occurred  early 
ui  the  war.  One  of  the  consuls,  being  taken  ill,  was 
ordered  to  name  a  dictator  to  replace  him,  and  chose 
Papirius  Cursor.  This  champion  appointed  Q.  Fabius 
Rullianus,  another  famous  soldier,  his  master  of  the 
horse,  and  marched  out  to  attack  the  Samnites. 

As  it  happened,  the  auspices  taken  by  the  dictator 
at  Borne  before  marching  to  the  seat  of  war  were 
of  no  particular  significance.  Not  satisfied  with 
them,  he  decided  to  take  them  again,  and  returned 
to  Rome  for  this  purpose,  the  auspices  being  of  a 
kind  which  could  only  be  taken  within  the  city 
walls.  He  ordered  the  master  of  the  horse  to  re- 
main strictly  on  the  defensive  during  his  absence. 

Fabius  did  not  obey  this  order.  He  attacked  the 
enemy  and  gained  some  advantage.  The  annals 
say  that  he  won  a  great  victory,  defeating  the 
Samnites  with  a  loss  of  twenty  thousand  men ;  but 
the  annals  have  a  habit  of  magnifying  small  affairs 
into  large  ones  where  they  have  any  object  to  gain. 

On  hearing  that  his  orders  had  been  disobeyed, 
Papirius  hurried  back  to  the  camp  in  a  violent  rage, 
and  with  the  intention  of  making  such  an  example 
of  discipline  as  Manlius  had  made  in  the  execution 
of  his  son.  On  reaching  camp  he  ordered  that 
Fabius  should  be  immediately  executed.  His  au- 


ANECDOTES   OF  THE   LATIN   AND   SAMNITB    WARS.        113 

thority  as  dictator  gave  him  power  for  this  violent 
act ;  but  he  failed  to  reckon  on  the  spirit  of  the  sol- 
diers, who  supported  Fabius  to  a  man,  and  broke 
into  a  violent  demonstration  that  was  almost  mutiny. 
So  strong  was  their  feeling  that  the  furious  dictator 
found  himself  obliged  to  halt  in  his  purpose. 

But  Fabius  knew  too  well  the  iron  nature  of  his 
antagonist  to  trust  his  life  in  his  hands.  That  night 
he  fled  from  the  camp  to  Eome,  and  immediately 
appealed  to  the  senate  for  protection.  Papirius 
followed  in  hot  haste,  and  while  the  senators  were 
still  assembling  arrived  in  Eome,  where,  under  his 
authority  as  dictator,  he  gave  order  for  the  arrest 
of  the  culprit.  In  this  critical  situation  the  pris- 
oner's father,  M.  Fabius,  appealed  to  the  tribunes 
for  the  protection  of  his  son,  saying  that  he  pro- 
posed to  carry  the  case  before  the  assembly  of  the 
people. 

The  tribunes  found  themselves  in  a  dilemma. 
Papirius  warned  them  not  to  sanction  so  flagrant 
a  breach  of  military  discipline,  nor  to  lessen  the 
majesty  of  the  office  of  dictator,  and  they  found 
themselves  hesitating  between  their  duty  to  support 
the  absolute  power  of  the  dictator  and  their  abhor- 
rence of  an  exercise  of  this  power  that  must  shock 
the  feelings  of  the  whole  Eoman  people.  The 
people  themselves  relieved  their  tribunes  from  this 
difficulty.  They  hastily  met  in  assembly,  and  by  a 
unanimous  vote  implored  the  dictator  to  be  merci- 
ful, and  for  their  sakes  to  forgive  Fabius.  His 
authority  thus  acknowledged,  Papirius  yielded,  and 
declared  that  he  pardoned  the  master  of  the  horse. 
ii.— A  10* 


114  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

"And  the  authority  of  the  Roman  generals,"  says 
Livy,  "was  established  no  less  firmly  by  the  peril  of 
Q.  Fabius  than  by  the  actual  death  of  the  young  T. 
Manlius." 

It  was  well  for  Kome  that  Fabius  was  spared,  for 
he  afterwards  proved  one  of  their  ablest  generals. 
The  time  came,  also,  when  he  was  able  to  confer  a 
benefit  upon  Papirius  Cursor.  This  was  during  a 
subsequent  war  with  the  Etruscans,  in  which  he 
commanded  as  consul  and  gained  great  victories. 
Meanwhile  a  Roman  army  was  defeated  by  the 
Samnites,  and  on  the  news  of  this  defeat  reaching 
Rome  the  senate  at  once  resolved  to  appoint  Papi- 
rius once  more  as  dictator. 

But  this  appointment  must  be  made  by  a  consul. 
One  consul  was  with  the  defeated  army,  perhaps 
dead.  It  was  necessary  to  apply  to  Fabius,  the  other 
consul,  and  the  declared  enemy  of  the  proposed  dicta- 
tor. To  overcome  his  personal  feelings,  a  deputation 
of  the  highest  senators  was  sent  him,  who  read  him 
the  senate's  decree  and  strongly  urged  him  to  sup- 
port it.  Fabius  listened  in  dead  silence,  not  answer- 
ing by  word  or  look.  When  they  had  ended,  he  ab- 
ruptly withdrew  from  the  room.  But  at  dead  of 
night  he  pronounced,  in  the  usual  form,  the  nomi- 
nation of  Papirius  as  dictator.  When  the  deputies 
thanked  him  for  his  noble  conquest  over  his  feelings, 
he  listened  still  in  dead  silence,  and  dismissed  them 
without  a  word  in  answer. 

We  must  now  pass  over  years  of  war,  in  which 
both  Fabius  and  Papirius  gained  honor  and  fame, 
and  come  to  an  occasion  in  which  the  son  of  Fabius 


ANECDOTES   OF   THE   LATIN   AND   SAMNITE    WARS.        115 

led  a  Roman  army  as  consul,  and  met  with  a  severe 
defeat  by  a  Samnite  army.  He  had  been  tricked 
by  the  Samnites,  and  great  indignation  was  aroused 
against  him  in  Rome.  It  was  proposed  to  remove 
him  from  his  office,  a  disgrace  which  no  consul  ever 
experienced  in  Roman  history.  It  was  also  proposed 
that  old  Fabius  should  be  appointed  dictator.  But 
the  aged  soldier,  to  preserve  the  honor  of  his  son, 
offered  to  go  with  him  as  his  lieutenant,  and  the  offer 
was  accepted  by  the  senate. 

A  second  battle  ensued,  in  the  heat  of  which  the 
consul  became  surrounded  by  the  enemy,  and  his 
aged  father  led  the  charge  to  his  rescue.  His  ex- 
ample animated  the  Romans,  they  followed  him  in  a 
vigorous  assault,  and  a  complete  victory  was  won. 
Twenty  thousand  Samnites  were  slain,  four  thou- 
sand taken  prisoners,  and  with  them  their  general, 
C.  Pontius.  After  other  victories  the  younger  Fabius 
returned  to  Rome  and  was  given  a  triumph,  while 
behind  him  rode  his  old  father  on  horseback,  as  one 
of  his  lieutenants,  delighting  in  the  honor  conferred 
on  his  son.  The  Samnite  general  was  made  to  walk 
in  the  procession,  and  at  its  end  was  taken  to  the 
prison  under  the  Capitoline  Hill  and  there  beheaded. 
It  was  thus  that  Rome  dealt  with  its  captured  foes. 


THE  CAUDINE  FORKS. 

WESTWARD  from  Rome  rise  the  Apennine  Moun- 
tains, the  backbone  of  Italy ;  and  amid  their  highest 
peaks,  where  the  snow  lies  all  the  year  long,  and 
whence  streams  flow  into  the  two  seas,  dwelt  the 
Sabines,  an  important  people,  from  whom  came  the 
mothers  of  the  Roman  state.  There  is  a  legend 
concerning  this  people  which  we  have  now  to  tell. 
For  many  years  they  had  been  at  war  with  their 
neighbors,  the  Umbrians ;  and  at  length,  failing  to 
conquer  their  enemies  by  their  own  strength,  they 
sought  to  obtain  the  help  of  the  divinities.  They 
made  a  vow  that  if  victory  was  given  to  them,  all 
the  living  creatures  born  that  year  in  their  land 
should  be  held  as  sacred  to  the  gods. 

The  victory  came,  and  they  sacrificed  all  the  lambs, 
calves,  kids,  and  pigs  of  that  year's  birth,  while  they 
redeemed  from  the  gods  such  animals  as  were  not 
suitable  for  sacrifice.  But,  as  it  appeared,  the  deities 
were  not  satisfied.  The  land  refused  to  yield  its 
fruits,  and  the  Sabines  were  not  long  in  deciding 
why  their  crops  had  failed.  They  had  neither  sacri- 
ficed nor  redeemed  the  children  born  that  year,  and 
had  thus  failed  in  their  duty  to  the  gods. 

To  atone  for  this  fault,  all  their  children  of  that 
116 


THE   CATJDINE   FORKS.  117 

year's  birth  were  devoted  to  the  god  Mamers,  and 
when  they  had  grown  up  they  were  sent  away  to 
make  themselves  a  home  in  a  new  land.  As  the 
young  men  started  on  their  pilgrimage  a  bull  went 
before  them,  and,  as  they  fancied  that  Mamers  had 
sent  this  animal  for  their  guide,  they  piously  followed 
him.  He  first  lay  down  to  rest  when  he  had  come 
to  the  land  of  the  Opicans.  This  the  Sabines  took 
for  a  sign,  and  they  fell  on  the  Opicans,  who  dwelt 
in  villages  without  walls,  and  drove  them  out  from 
their  country,  of  which  the  new-comers  took  posses- 
sion. They  then  sacrificed  the  bull  to  Mamers ;  and 
in  after-ages  they  bore  the  bull  for  their  device. 
They  also  took  a  new  name,  and  were  afterwards 
known  as  Samm'tes. 

While  the  Eomans  were  extending  their  dominion 
in  Central  Italy,  the  Samnites  were  conquering  the 
peoples  farther  south.  Their  dominion  became 
great,  and  at  one  time  included  the  famous  cities 
of  Herculaneum  and  Pompeii  and  many  others  of 
the  cities  of  the  southern  plains.  In  the  centre  of 
the  Samnite  country  stood  a  remarkable  mountain 
mass,  an  offshoot  from  the  Apennines.  This  moun- 
tain, now  called  the  Matese,  is  nearly  eight  miles  in 
circumference,  and  rises  abruptly  in  huge  wall-like 
cliffs  of  limestone  to  the  height  of  three  thousand 
feet.  Its  surface  is  greatly  varied  in  character,  now 
sloping  into  deep  valleys,  now  rising  into  elevated 
cliffs,  of  which  the  loftiest  is  six  thousand  feet  high. 
It  is  rich  in  springs,  which  gush  out  in  full  flow,  and 
disappear  again  in  the  caverns  with  which  limestone 
rocks  abound.  Its  valleys  yield  abundant  pasture 


118  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

and  magnificent  beech  forests,  while  on  its  highest 
summits  the  snow  tarries  till  late  summer,  and  in  the 
Hottest  months  of  summer  the  upland  pastures  con- 
tinue cool. 

This  mountain  fastness  formed  the  citadel  from 
which  the  Samnites  issued  in  conquering  excursions 
over  the  surrounding  country,  and  enabled  them  in 
time  to  extend  their  dominion  far  and  wide,  and  to 
rival  Rome  in  the  width  and  importance  of  their 
state.  Thus  Rome  and  Samnium  approached  each 
other  step  by  step,  and  the  time  inevitably  came 
when  they  were  to  join  issue  in  war. 

Three  wars  took  place  between  the  Romans  and 
the  Samnites.  In  the  first  of  these  Valerius  Cor- 
vus  (the  origin  of  whose  name  of  Corvus  we  have 
already  told)  led  the  Roman  army  to  victory.  In 
honor  of  this  victory  Rome  received  from  Carthage 
(with  which  city  it  was  to  engage  in  a  desperate 
contest  in  later  years)  a  golden  crown,  for  the  shrine 
of  Jupiter  in  the  Capitol. 

In  329  B.C.  Rome  finally  overcame  the  Volscians, 
with  whom  they  had  been  many  years  at  war,  and 
three  years  afterwards  war  with  the  Samnites  was 
again  declared.  The  latter  were  invading  Cam- 
pania, in  which  country  lay  the  volcano  of  Vesuvius 
and  the  city  of  Naples.  Rome  came  to  the  aid  of 
the  Campanians,  and  a  war  began  which  lasted  for 
more  than  twenty  years. 

Of  this  war  we  have  but  one  event  to  tell,  that  in 
which  Rome  suffered  the  greatest  humiliation  it  had 
met  with  in  its  entire  career,  the  famous  affair  of  the 
Caudine  Forks.  It  was  in  the  fifth  campaign  of  the 


THE   CAUDINE   PORKS.  119 

war  that  this  event  took  place.  Two  Roman  armies 
had  marched  into  Campania  and  threatened  the 
southern  border  of  Samnium,  which  the  Samnite 
general  Pontius  was  prepared  to  defend.  His  force 
occupied  the  passes  which  led  from  the  plain  of 
Naples  into  the  higher  mountain  valleys;  but  he 
deceived  the  Romans  by  spreading  the  report  that 
the  whole  Samnite  army  had  gone  to  Apulia,  where 
they  were  besieging  the  city  of  Luceria.  His  pur- 
pose was  to  lure  the  Romans  into  these  difficult 
defiles  under  the  impression  that  the  Samnites  wert. 
trusting  to  the  natural  strength  of  their  country  for 
its  defence. 

The  trick  succeeded.  The  Roman  consuls  believed 
the  story,  and,  in  their  haste  to  go  to  the  aid  of  their 
allies  in  Apulia,  chose  the  shortest  route,  that  which 
led  through  the  Samnian  hills.  The  absence  of  the 
Samnite  army  would  enable  them,  they  thought,  to 
force  their  way  through  Samnium  without  difficulty ; 
and,  blinded  by  their  false  confidence,  the  consuls 
recklessly  led  their  men  into  the  fatal  pass  of 
Caudium. 

This  pass  was  a  narrow  opening  in  the  outer  wall 
of  the  Apennines,  which  led  from  the  plain  of  Cam- 
pania to  Maleventum.  To-day  it  is  traversed  by  the 
road  from  Naples  to  Benevento,  and  is  called  the 
valley  of  Arpaia.  In  the  past  it  was  famous  as 
Caudium. 

Into  this  defile  the  Romans  marched  between  the 
rugged  mountain  acclivities  that  bounded  its  sides, 
and  through  the  deep  silence  that  reigned  around. 
The  pass  seemed  utterly  deserted,  and  they  expected 


120  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

soon  to  emerge  into  a  more  open  valley  in  the  interior 
of  the  hills. 

But  as  they  advanced  the  pass  contracted,  until  it 
became  but  a  narrow  gorge,  and  this  they  found  to 
be  blocked  up  with  great  stones  and  felled  trees. 
Brought  to  a  halt,  the  troops  stood  gazing  in  dismay 
and  dread  on  these  obstacles,  when  suddenly  the 
silence  was  broken,  loud  war-cries  filled  the  air,  and 
armed  Samnites  appeared  as  if  by  magic,  covering 
the  hills  on  both  flanks,  and  crowding  into  the  pass 
in  the  rear. 

The  Eomans  were  caught  in  such  a  trap  as  that 
from  which  Cincinnatus  had  rescued  a  Roman  army 
many  years  before.  But  there  was  here  no  Cincin- 
natus with  his  stakes,  and  they  were  far  from  Rome. 
The  entrapped  army  made  a  desperate  effort  to  es- 
cape, attacking  the  Samnites  in  the  rear,  and  seeking 
to  force  their  way  up  the  rugged  surrounding  hills. 
They  fought  in  vain.  Many  of  them  fell.  The 
Samnite  foe  pressed  them  still  more  closely  into  the 
rocky  pass.  Only  the  coming  of  night  saved  them 
from  total  destruction. 

But  escape  was  impossible.  The  gorge  in  front 
was  completely  blocked  up.  The  pass  in  the  rear 
was  held  by  the  enemy  in  force.  The  flanking  hills 
could  hardly  have  been  climbed  by  an  army,  even  if 
they  had  not  been  occupied.  No  resource  remained 
to  the  Romans  but  to  encamp  in  the  broader  part  of 
the  narrow  valley,  and  there  wait  in  hopeless  despair 
the  outcome  of  their  folly. 

The  Samnites  could  well  afford  to  let  them  wait. 
The  rear  was  held  by  the  bulk  of  their  army.  The 


THE   CAUDINE   PORKS.  121 

obstacles  in  front  were  strongly  guarded.  Every 
possible  track  by  which  the  Eomans  might  try  to 
scale  the  hills  was  held.  Some  desperate  attempts 
to  break  out  were  made,  but  they  were  easily  re- 
pulsed. Nothing  remained  but  surrender,  or  death 
by  famine. 

One  or  other  of  these  alternatives  had  soon  to  be 
chosen.  A  large  army,  surprised  on  its  march,  and 
confined  within  a  barren  pass,  could  not  have  subsist- 
ence for  any  long  period.  Nothing  was  to  be  gained 
by  delay,  and  they  might  as  well  yield  themselves 
prisoners  of  war  at  once. 

So  the  Eomans  evidently  thought,  and  without 
delay  they  put  themselves  at  the  mercy  of  their  con- 
querors. "  We  yield  ourselves  your  captives,"  they 
said,  "to  do  with  as  you  will.  Put  us  all  to  the 
sword,  if  such  be  your  decision ;  sell  us  into  slavery ; 
or  hold  us  as  prisoners  until  we  are  ransomed :  one 
thing  only  we  ask,  save  our  bodies,  whether  living  or 
dead,  from  all  unworthy  insults.'' 

In  this  request  they  forgot  the  record  that  Rome 
had  made ;  forgot  how  often  noble  captives  had  been 
forced  to  walk  in  Roman  triumphs  and  been  after- 
wards slain  in  cold  blood  in  the  common  prison ;  for- 
got how  they  had  recently  refused  the  rites  of  burial 
to  the  body  of  a  noble  Samnite.  But  Pontius,  the 
Samnite  general,  was  much  less  of  a  barbarian  than 
the  Romans  of  that  age.  He  was  acquainted  with 
Greek  philosophy,  had  even  held  conversation,  it  is 
said,  with  Plato,  and  was  not  the  man  to  indulge  in 
cruel  or  insulting  acts. 

"  Restore  to  us,"  he  said  to  the  consuls,  "  the  towns 
»  11 


122  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

and  territory  you  have  taken  from  us,  and  withdraw 
the  colonists  whom  you  have  unjustly  placed  on  our 
Boil.  Conclude  with  us  a  treaty  of  peace,  in  which 
each  nation  shall  be  acknowledged  to  be  independent 
of  the  other.  Swear  to  do  this,  and  I  will  grant  you 
your  lives  and  release  you  without  ransom.  Each 
man  of  you  shall  give  up  his  arms,  but  may  keep 
his  clothes  untouched  ;  and  you  shall  pass  before 
our  army  as  prisoners  who  have  been  in  our  power 
and  whom  we  have  set  free  of  our  own  will,  when 
we  might  have  killed  or  sold  them,  or  held  them  for 
ransom." 

These  terms  the  consuls  were  glad  enough  to 
accept.  They  were  far  better  than  they  would  have 
granted  the  Samnites  under  similar  circumstances. 
Pontius  now  called  for  the  Roman  fecialis,  whose 
duty  it  was  to  conclude  all  treaties  and  take  all  oaths 
for  the  Roman  people.  But  there  was  no  fecialis 
with  the  army.  The  senate  had  sent  none,  having 
resolved  to  make  no  terms  with  the  Samnites,  and  to 
accept  only  their  absolute  submission.  They  had 
never  dreamed  of  such  a  turn  of  the  tide  as  this. 

In  the  absence  of  the  proper  officer,  the  consuls 
and  all  the  surviving  officers  took  the  oath,  while  it 
was  agreed  that  six  hundred  knights  should  be  held 
as  hostages  until  the  Roman  people  had  ratified  the 
treaty.  Why  Pontius  did  not  insist  on  treating  with 
the  senate  and  people  of  Rome  at  once,  instead  of 
trusting  to  them  to  ratify  a  treaty  made  with 
prisoners  of  war,  we  are  not  told.  He  was  soon  to 
learn  how  weak  a  reed  to  lean  upon  was  the  Roman 
faith. 


THE   CAUDINE   FORKS.  123 

The  treaty  made,  the  humiliating  part  of  the  affair 
came.  The  Eoman  army  was  obliged  to  march 
under  the  yoke,  which  consisted  of  two  spears  set 
upright  and  a  third  fastened  across  their  tops. 
Under  this  the  soldiers  of  the  legions  without  their 
arms,  and  wearing  but  a  single  article  of  clothing, — 
the  campestre  or  kilt,  which  reached  from  the  waist 
to  the  knees, — passed  in  gloomy  succession.  Even 
the  consuls  were  obliged  to  appear  in  this  humble 
plight,  the  six  hundred  hostage  knights  alone  being 
spared. 

This  was  no  peculiar  insult,  but  a  common  usage 
on  such  occasions.  The  Eomans  had  imposed  it 
more  than  once  on  defeated  enemies.  They  were 
now  to  endure  it  themselves,  and  the  affair,  under 
the  name  of  the  Caudine  Forks,  has  become  famous 
in  history. 

Pontius  proved,  indeed,  generous  to  his  foes.  He 
supplied  carriages  for  the  sick  and  wounded,  and 
furnished  provisions  to  last  the  army  until  it  should 
arrive  at  Eome.  When  that  city  was  reached  the 
senate  and  people  came  out  and  welcomed  the  sol- 
diers with  the  greatest  kindness.  But  the  wounded 
pride  of  the  legionaries  could  not  be  soothed.  Those 
who  had  homes  in  the  country  stole  from  the  ranks 
and  sought  their  several  dwellings.  Those  who  lived 
in  Eome  lingered  without  the  walls  until  after  the 
sun  had  fallen,  and  then  made  their  way  home 
through  the  darkness.  The  consuls  were  obliged  to 
enter  in  open  day,  but  as  soon  as  possible  they  sought 
their  homes,  and  shut  themselves  up  in  privacy. 

As  for  the  city,  it  went  into  mourning.     All  busi- 


124  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

ness  was  suspended ;  the  patricians  laid  aside  their 
gold  rings  and  took  off  the  red  border  of  their 
dresses  which  marked  their  rank;  the  plebeians 
appeared  in  mourning  garbs;  there  was  as  much 
weeping  for  those  who  had  returned  in  dishonor  as 
for  those  left  dead  on  the  field ;  all  rejoicings,  festi- 
vals, and  marriages  were  set  aside  for  a  year  of 
happier  omen. 

The  final  result  was  such  as  might  have  been  ex- 
pected from  the  earlier  record  of  Rome.  The  senate 
refused  to  recognize  the  treaty.  The  defeated  con- 
suls themselves  sustained  this  bad  faith,  saying  that 
they  and  all  the  officers  should  be  given  up  to  the 
Samnites,  as  having  promised  what  they  were  unable 
to  perform. 

This  was  done.  Half  stripped,  as  when  they 
passed  under  the  yoke,  and  their  hands  bound  behind 
their  backs,  the  officers  were  conducted  by  the  fecia- 
les  to  the  Samnian  frontier,  and  delivered  to  the 
Samnites  as  men  who  had  forfeited  their  liberty  by 
their  breach  of  faith.  The  surrender  completed, 
Postumius,  one  of  the  consuls,  struck  a  fecialis 
violently  with  his  knee, — his  hands  and  feet  being 
bound, — and  cried  out, — 

"  I  now  belong  to  the  Samnites,  and  I  have  done 
violence  to  the  sacred  person  of  a  Roman  fecialis  and 
ambassador.  You  will  rightfully  wage  war  with  us, 
Romans,  to  avenge  this  outrage." 

This  transparent  trick  was  wasted  on  Pontius. 
He  refused  the  victims  offered  him.  They  were  not 
the  guilty  ones,  he  said.  The  legions  must  be  placed 
again  in  the  Caudium  Valley,  or  Rome  keep  the 


THE   CAUDINE   FORKS.  125 

treaty.     Anything   else  would  be   base  and  faith- 
less. 

The  treaty  was  not  kept.  The  war  went  on.  And 
nearly  thirty  years  afterwards,  as  we  have  told  in  the 
preceding  story,  Pontius,  who  had  behaved  so  gen- 
erously to  the  Eomans,  was  led  as  a  prisoner  in  a 
Eoman  triumph,  and  then  basely  beheaded  while 
the  triumphal  car  of  the  victor  ascended  the  Capitol- 
me  Hill.  His  death  is  one  of  the  darkest  blots  on 
the  Eoman  name.  "Such  a  murder,"  we  are  told, 
"committed  or  sanctioned  by  such  a  man  as  Q. 
Fabius,  is  peculiarly  a  national  crime,  and  proves 
but  too  clearly  that  in  their  dealings  with  foreigners 
the  Eomans  had  neither  magnanimity,  nor  humanity, 
nor  justice." 


THE  FATE  OF  REGULUS. 

WE  have  followed  the  growth  of  Eorae  from  itt 
seed  in  the  cradle  of  Romulus  and  Remus  to  its 
early  maturity  in  the  conquest  of  Italy.  Its  triumph 
over  the  Latins,  Samnites,  and  Etruscans  had  made 
it  virtually  master  of  that  peninsula.  In  the  year 
280  B.C.  it  was  first  called  upon  to  meet  a  great 
foreign  soldier  in  the  celebrated  Pyrrhus  of  Epirus, 
who  had  invaded  Italy.  How  this  great  soldier 
scared  the  Romans  with  his  elephants  and  defeated 
them  in  the  field,  but  was  finally  baffled  and  left  the 
country  in  disgust,  we  have  told  in  "  Historical  Tales 
of  Greece."  It  was  not  many  years  after  this  that 
Rome  herself  went  abroad  in  search  of  new  foes, 
and  her  long  and  bitter  struggle  with  Carthage 
began. 

The  great  city  of  Carthage  lay  on  the  African  side 
of  the  Mediterranean,  where  it  had  won  for  itself  a 
great  empire,  and  had  added  to  its  dominion  by  im- 
portant conquests  in  Spain  and  Sicily.  Settled  many 
centuries  before  by  emigrants  from  the  Phoenician 
city  of  Tyre,  it  had,  like  its  mother  city,  grown  rich 
through  commerce,  and  was  now  lord  of  the  Medi- 
terranean and  one  of  the  great  cities  of  the  earth. 
With  this  city  Rome  was  now  to  begin  a  mighty 
struggle,  which  would  last  for  many  years  and  end 
126 


THE   PATE   OF  REQULUS.  127 

in  the  utter  destruction  of  the  great  African  city 
and  state. 

Pyrrhus  of  Epirus,  on  leaving  Sicily,  had  said, 
"  What  a  grand  arena  this  would  be  for  Home  and 
Carthage  to  contend  upon!"  And  it  was  in  the 
island  of  Sicily  that  the  struggle  between  these  two 
mighty  powers  began.  In  the  year  264  B.C.,  nearly 
five  centuries  after  the  founding  of  Rome,  that  city 
first  sent  its  armies  beyond  the  borders  of  Italy,  and 
the  long  contest  between  Rome  and  Carthage  was 
inaugurated. 

Some  soldiers  of  fortune,  who  had  invaded  Sicily 
and  found  themselves  in  trouble,  called  upon  Rome 
for  help.  Carthage,  which  held  much  of  the  island, 
was  also  appealed  to,  and  both  sent  armies.  The  re- 
sult was  a  collision  between  these  armies.  In  two 
years'  time  most  of  Sicily  belonged  to  Rome,  and 
Carthage  retained  hardly  a  foothold  upon  that 
island. 

This  rapid  success  of  the  Romans  in  foreign  con- 
quest encouraged  them  greatly.  But  they  were 
soon  to  find  themselves  at  a  disadvantage.  Being 
an  inland  power,  they  knew  nothing  of  ocean  war- 
fare, and  possessed  none  but  small  ships.  Carthage, 
on  the  contrary,  had  a  large  and  powerful  fleet,  and 
now  began  to  use  it  with  great  effect.  By  its  aid 
the  Carthaginians  took  from  Rome  many  towns  on 
the  coast  of  Sicily.  They  also  landed  on  and  ravaged 
the  coasts  of  Italy.  It  was  made  evident  to  the 
Roman  senate  that  if  they  looked  for  success  they 
must  meet  the  enemy  on  their  own  element,  and 
dispute  with  Carthage  the  dominion  of  the  sea. 


128  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

How  was  this  to  be  done?  The  largest  ships  they 
knew  of  had  only  three  banks  of  oars.  Carthage 
possessed  war  vessels  with  five  banks  of  oars,  and 
built  on  a  plan  different  from,  that  of  the  smaller 
vessels.  Rome  had  no  model  for  these  ships,  and  was 
at  a  loss  what  to  do.  Fortunately  a  Carthaginian 
quinquereme  (a  ship  with  five  banks  of  oars)  ran 
ashore  on  the  coast  of  Italy,  and  was  captured  and 
sent  to  Eome.  This  served  as  a  model  for  the  ship- 
wrights of  that  city,  and  so  energetically  did  they 
set  to  work  that  in  two  months  after  the  first  cutting 
of  the  timber  they  had  built  and  launched  more  than 
a  hundred  ships  of  this  class. 

And  while  the  ships  were  building  the  crews  se- 
lected for  the  quinqueremes  were  practising.  Most 
of  them  had  never  even  seen  an  oar,  and  they  were 
now  placed  on  benches  ashore,  ranged  like  those  in 
the  ships,  and  carefully  taught  the  movements  of 
rowing,  so  that  when  the  ships  were  launched  they 
were  quite  ready  to  drive  them  through  the  waves. 
The  Romans,  who  could  fight  best  hand  to  hand, 
added  a  new  and  important  device,  providing  their 
ships  with  wooden  bridges  attached  to  the  masts, 
and  ready  to  fall  on  an  enemy's  vessel  whenever  one 
came  near.  A  great  spike  at  the  end  was  driven 
into  the  deck  of  the  enemy's  ship  by  the  weight  of 
the  falling  bridge,  and  held  her  while  the  Romans 
charged  acrosa  the  bridge. 

The  new  fleet  was  soon  tried.  It  met  a  Cartha- 
ginian fleet  on  the  north  coast  of  Sicily.  The  Ro- 
mans proved  poor  sailors,  but  the  bridges  gave  them 
the  victory.  These  could  be  wheeled  round  the  mast 


THE   FATE   OF   REGULTT8.  129 

and  dropped  in  any  direction,  and,  however  the  Car- 
thaginians approached,  they  found  themselves  grap- 
pled and  boarded  by  the  Eomans,  whose  formidable 
swords  soon  did  the  rest.  In  the  end  Carthage  lost 
fifty  ships  and  ten  thousand  men,  and  with  them  the 
dominion  of  the  seas. 

This  success  was  a  great  event  in  the  history  of 
Eome.  The  victory  was  celebrated  by  a  great  naval 
triumph,  and  a  column  was  set  up  in  the  Forum, 
which  was  adorned  with  the  ornamental  prows  of 
ships. 

Three  years  afterwards  Eome  resolved  to  carry 
the  war  into  Africa,  and  for  this  purpose  built  a 
great  fleet  of  three  hundred  and  thirty  ships,  and 
manned  by  nearly  three  hundred  thousand  seamen, 
in  addition  to  its  soldiers  or  fighting  men.  These 
were  largely  made  up  of  prisoners  from  Sardinia  and 
Corsica,  Carthaginian  islands  which  had  been  at- 
tacked by  the  Eoman  fleets.  The  two  consuls  in 
command  were  L.  Manlius  Vulso  and  M.  Atilius 
Eegulus. 

The  great  fleet  of  Eome  met  a  still  greater  Car- 
thaginian one  at  Ecnomus,  on  the  southern  coast  of 
Sicily,  and  here  one  of  the  greatest  sea-fights  of  his- 
tory took  place.  In  the  end  the  Eomans  lost  twenty- 
four  ships,  while  of  those  of  the  enemy  thirty  were 
sunk  and  sixty-four  captured.  The  remainder  of  the 
enemy's  fleet  fled  in  all  haste  to  Carthage. 

The  Eomans  now  prepared  to  take  one  of  the 
greatest  steps  in  their  history, — to  cross  the  sea  to 
the  unknown  African  world.  The  soldiers  mur- 
mured loudly  at  this.  They  were  to  be  taken  to  a 


130  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

new  and  strange  land,  burnt  by  scorching  heats  and 
infested  with  noisome  beasts  and  monstrous  ser- 
pents ;  and  they  were  to  be  led  into  the  very  strong- 
hold of  the  enemy,  where  they  would  be  at  their 
mercy.  Even  one  of  their  tribunes  supported  the 
soldiers  in  this  complaint.  But  Eegulus  was  equal 
to  the  occasion:  he  threatened  the  tribune  with 
death,  forced  the  soldiers  on  board,  and  sailed  for 
the  African  coast. 

The  event  proved  very  different  from  what  the 
soldiers  had  feared.  The  army  of  Carthage  was  so 
miserably  commanded  that  the  Eomans  landed  with- 
out trouble  and  ravaged  the  country  at  their  will ; 
and  instead  of  the  scorching  heats  and  deadly  ani- 
mals they  had  feared,  they  found  themselves  in  a 
fertile  and  thickly-settled  country,  where  grew  rich 
harvests  of  corn,  and  where  were  broad  vineyards 
and  fruitful  orchards  of  figs  and  olives.  Towns  were 
numerous,  and  villas  of  wealthy  citizens  covered  the 
bills. 

On  this  rich  and  undefended  country  the  hungry 
Roman  army  was  let  loose.  Villas  were  plundered 
and  burnt,  horses  and  cattle  driven  off  in  vast  num. 
bers,  and  twenty  thousand  persons,  many  of  them 
doubtless  of  wealth  and  rank,  were  carried  away  to 
be  sold  as  slaves.  Meanwhile  the  army  of  Carthage 
lurked  on  the  hills,  and  was  defeated  wherever  en- 
countered. Regulus,  who  had  been  left  in  sole  com- 
mand of  the  Roman  army,  overran  the  country 
without  opposition,  and  boasted  that  he  had  taken 
and  plundered  more  than  three  hundred  walled 
towns  or  villages. 


THE   FATE   OP  REQULUS.  131 

The  Carthaginians,  who  were  also  attacked  by 
roving  desert  tribes,  who  proved  even  worse  than 
the  Eomans,  were  in  distress,  and  begged  for  peace. 
But  the  terms  offered  by  Regulus  were  so  intoler- 
able that  it  was  impossible  to  accept  them.  "  Men 
who  are  good  for  anything  should  either  conquer  or 
submit  to  their  betters,"  said  Eegulus,  haughtily. 
He  had  not  yet  learned  how  unwise  it  is  to  drive  a 
strong  foe  to  desperation,  and  was  to  pay  dearly  for 
his  arrogance  and  pride. 

The  tide  of  war  turned  when  Carthage  obtained  a 
general  fit  to  command  an  army.  An  officer  who  had 
been  sent  to  Greece  for  soldiers  of  fortune  brought 
with  him  on  his  return  a  Spartan  named  Xan- 
thippus,  a  man  who  had  been  trained  in  the  rigid 
Spartan  discipline  and  had  played  his  part  well  in 
the  wars  of  Greece.  He  openly  and  strongly  con- 
demned the  conduct  of  the  generals  of  Carthage; 
and,  on  his  words  being  reported  to  the  govern- 
ment, he  was  sent  for,  and  so  clearly  pointed  out  the 
causes  of  the  late  disasters  that  the  direction  of  all 
the  forces  of  Carthage  was  placed  in  his  hands. 

And  now  a  new  spirit  awakened  in  Carthage. 
Xanthippus  reviewed  the  troops,  taught  them  how 
they  should  meet  the  Roman  charge,  and  filled  them 
with  such  enthusiasm  and  hope  that  loud  shouts 
broke  from  the  ranks,  and  they  eagerly  demanded 
to  be  led  at  once  to  battle. 

The  army  numbered  only  twelve  thousand  foot, 
but  had  four  thousand  cavalry  and  a  hundred  ele- 
phants, in  which  much  confidence  was  placed.  The 
demand  of  the  soldiers  was  complied  with ;  they 


132  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

boldly  marched  out,  and  now  no  longer  to  the  hills, 
but  to  the  lower  ground,  where  the  devastation  of 
the  enemy  was  at  once  checked. 

Regulus  was  forced  to  risk  a  battle,  for  his  supply 
of  food  was  in  peril.  He  marched  out  and  encamped 
within  a  mile  of  the  foe.  The  Carthaginian  gen- 
erals, on  seeing  these  hardy  Eoman  legions,  so  long 
victorious,  were  stricken  with  something  like  panic. 
But  the  soldiers  were  eager  to  fight,  and  Xanthippus 
bade  the  wavering  generals  not  to  lose  so  precious 
an  opportunity.  They  yielded,  and  bade  him  to 
draw  up  the  army  on  his  own  plan. 

In  the  battle  that  ensued  the  victory  was  due  to 
the  cavalry  and  elephants.  The  cavalry  drove  that 
of  Italy  from  the  field,  and  attacked  the  Roman 
rear.  The  elephants  broke  through  the  Roman 
lines  in  front,  furiously  trampling  the  bravest  under- 
foot. Those  who  penetrated  the  line  of  the  ele- 
phants were  cut  to  pieces  by  the  Carthaginian  in- 
fantry. Of  the  whole  Roman  army,  two  thousand 
of  the  left  wing  alone  escaped ;  Regulus,  with  five 
hundred  others,  fled,  but  was  pursued  and  taken 
prisoner ;  the  remainder  of  the  army  was  destroyed 
to  a  man.  The  defeat  was  total.  Rome  retained 
but  a  single  African  port,  which  was  soon  given  up. 
Xanthippus,  crowned  with  glory  and  richly  re- 
warded, returned  to  Greece  to  enjoy  the  fame  be 
had  won. 

For  five  years  Regulus  remained  a  prisoner  in 
Carthage,  while  the  war  went  on  in  Sicily.  Here, 
in  the  year  250  B.C.,  the  Romans  gained  an  impor- 
tant victory  at  Panormus  (now  Palermo),  and  Car- 


THE   PATE    OF   REGULUS.  133 

thage,  weary  of  the  struggle,  sent  to  Rome  to  ask 
for  terras  of  peace.  With  the  ambassadors  came 
Regulus,  who  had  promised  to  return  to  Carthage 
if  the  negotiations  should  fail,  and  whom  the  Car- 
thaginians naturally  expected  to  use  his  utmost  in- 
fluence in  favor  of  peace. 

They  did  not  know  their  man.  Regulus  proved 
himself  one  of  those  indomitable  patriots  of  whom 
there  are  few  examples  in  the  ages.  On  reaching 
the  walls  of  Rome  he  refused  at  first  to  enter,  saying 
that  he  was  no  longer  a  citizen,  and  had  lost  his 
rights  in  that  city.  When  the  ambassadors  of  Car- 
thage had  offered  their  proposal  to  the  senate, 
Regulus,  who  had  remained  silent,  was  ordered  by 
the  senate  to  give  his  opinion  of  the  proposed 
treaty.  Thus  commanded,  he  astonished  all  who 
heard  by  strongly  advising  the  senate  not  to  make 
the  treaty.  He  might  die  for  his  words,  he  might 
perish  in  torture,  but  the  good  of  his  country  was 
dearer  to  him  than  his  own  life,  and  he  would  not 
counsel  a  treaty  that  might  prove  of  advantage  to 
the  enemy.  He  even  spoke  against  an  exchange  of 
prisoners,  saying  that  he  had  not  long  to  live,  having, 
he  believed,  been  given  a  secret  poison  by  his  cap- 
tors, and  would  not  make  a  fair  exchange  for  a  hale 
and  hearty  Carthaginian  general. 

Such  an  instance  of  self-abnegation  has  rarely 
been  heard  of  in  history.  It  has  made  Regulus 
famous  for  all  time.  His  advice  was  taken,  the 
treaty  was  refused ;  he,  refusing  to  break  his  parole, 
or  even  to  see  his  family,  returned  to  Carthage  with 
the  ambassadors,  knowing  that  he  was  going  to  his 
12 


134  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

death.  The  rulers  of  that  city,  so  it  is  said,  furioui 
*,hat  the  treaty  had  been  rejected  through  his  ad 
vice,  resolved  to  revenge  themselves  on  him  \>y  hor- 
rible tortures.  His  e3'elids  were  cut  off,  and  he  was 
exposed  to  the  full  glare  of  the  African  sun.  He 
was  then  placed  in  a  cask  driven  full  of  nails,  and 
left  there  to  die. 

It  is  fortunate  to  be  able  to  say  that  there  is  no 
historical  warrant  for  this  story  of  torture,  or  for 
the  companion  story  that  the  wife  and  son  of  Kegu- 
lus  treated  two  Carthaginian  prisoners  in  the  same 
manner.  We  have  reason  to  believe  that  it  is  un- 
true, and  that  Regulus  suffered  no  worse  tortures 
than  those  of  shame,  exile,  and  imprisonment. 


HANNIBAL   CROSSES  THE  ALPS. 


IN  the  year  235  B.C.  the  gates  of  the  Temple  of 
Janus  were  closed,  for  the  first  time  since  the  reign 
of  Numa  Pompilius,  the  second  king  of  Rome,  nearly 
five  centuries  before.  During  all  that  long  period 
war  had  hardly  ever  ceased  in  Rome.  And  these 
gates  were  soon  to  be  thrown  open  again,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  greatest  war  that  the  Roman  state 
had  ever  known,  a  war  which  was  to  bring  it  to  the 
very  brink  of  destruction. 

The  end  of  the  first  Punic  War — as  the  war  with 
Carthage  was  called — left  Rome  master  of  the  large 
island  of  Sicily,  the  first  province  gained  by  that 
ambitious  city  outside  of  Italy.  Advantage  was  also 
taken  of  some  home  troubles  in  Carthage  to  rob  that 
city  of  the  islands  of  Sardinia  and  Corsica, — a  piece 
of  open  piracy  which  redoubled  the  hatred  of  the 
Carthaginians. 

Yet  Rome  just  now  was  not  anxious  for  war 
with  her  southern  rival.  There  was  enough  to  do 
in  the  north,  for  another  great  invasion  of  Gauls 
was  threatened.  And  about  this  time  the  Capitol 
was  struck  by  lightning,  a  prodigy  which  plunged 
all  Rome  into  terror.  The  books  of  the  Sibyl  were 
hastily  consulted,  and  were  reported  to  say,  "  When 

135 


136  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  lightning  shall  strike  the  Capitol  and  the  Temple 
of  Apollo,  then  must  thou,  O  Koman,  beware  of  the 
Gauls."  Another  prophecy  said  that  the  time  would 
come  "  when  the  race  of  the  Greeks  and  the  race  of 
the  Gauls  should  occupy  the  Forum  of  Eome." 

But  Rome  had  its  own  way  of  dealing  with 
prophecies  and  discounting  the  decrees  of  destiny. 
A  man  and  woman  alike  of  the  Gaulish  and  of  the 
Greek  race  were  buried  alive  in  the  Forum  Boarium, 
and  in  this  cruel  way  the  public  fear  was  allayed. 
As  for  the  invasion  of  the  Gauls,  Eome  met  and 
dealt  with  them  in  its  usual  fashion,  defeating  them 
in  two  battles,  in  the  last  of  which  the  Gaulish 
army  was  annihilated.  This  ended  this  peril,  and 
the  dominion  of  Rome  was  extended  northward  to 
the  Alps. 

It  was  fortunate  for  the  Romans  that  they  had 
just  at  this  time  rid  themselves  of  the  Gauls,  for  they 
were  soon  to  have  a  greater  enemy  to  meet.  In  the 
first  Punic  War,  Carthage  had  been  destitute  of  a 
commander,  and  had  only  saved  herself  by  borrow- 
ing one  from  Greece.  In  the  second  war  she  had  a 
general  of  her  own,  one  who  has  hardly  had  his  equal 
before  or  since,  the  far-famed  Hannibal,  one  of  the 
few  soldiers  of  supreme  ability  which  the  world  has 
produced. 

During  the  peace  which  followed  the  first  Punic 
"War  Carthage  sent  an  expedition  to  Spain,  with  the 
purpose  of  extending  her  dominions  in  that  land. 
This  was  under  the  leadership  of  Hamilcar,  a  soldier 
of  much  ability.  As  he  was  about  to  set  sail  he 
offered  a  solemn  sacrifice  for  the  success  of  the  enter- 


HANNIBAL   CROSSES   THE   ALPS.  137 

prise.  Having  poured  the  libation  on  the  victim, 
which  was  then  duly  offered  on  the  altar,  he  requested 
all  those  present  to  step  aside,  and  called  up  his  son 
Hannibal,  at  that  time  a  boy  of  but  nine  years  of 
age.  Hamilcar  asked  him  if  he  would  like  to  go  to 
the  war.  With  a  child's  eagerness  the  boy  implored 
his  father  to  take  him.  Then  Hamilcar,  taking  the 
boy  by  the  hand,  led  him  up  to  the  altar,  and  bade 
him  lay  his  hand  on  the  sacrifice,  and  swear  "  that 
he  would  never  be  the  friend  of  the  Romans."  Han- 
nibal took  the  oath,  and  he  never  forgot  it.  His 
whole  mature  life  was  spent  in  warfare  with  Rome. 

From  the  city  of  New  Carthage  (or  Carthagena), 
founded  by  Carthage  in  Spain,  Hamilcar  gradually 
won  a  wide  dominion  in  that  land.  He  was  killed  in 
battle  after  nine  years  of  success,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Hasdrubal,  another  soldier  of  fine  powers.  On 
the  death  of  Hasdrubal,  Hannibal,  then  twenty-six 
years  of  age,  was  made  commander-in  chief  of  the 
Carthaginian  armies  in  Spain.  Shortly  afterwards 
his  long  struggle  with  Rome  began. 

Hannibal  had  laid  siege  to  and  captured  the  city 
of  Saguntum.  The  people  of  Saguntum  were  allies 
of  Rome.  That  city,  being  once  more  ready  for  war 
with  its  rival,  sent  ambassadors  to  Carthage  to 
demand  that  Hannibal  and  his  officers  should  be  sur- 
rendered as  Roman  prisoners,  for  a  breach  of  the 
treaty  of  peace.  After  a  long  debate,  Fabius,  the 
Roman  envoy,  gathered  up  his  toga  as  if  something 
was  wrapped  in  it,  and  said,  "  Look  ;  here  are  peace 
and  war ;  take  which  you  choose."  "  Give  which- 
ever you  please,"  was  the  haughty  Carthaginian 
12* 


138  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

reply.  "  Then  we  give  you  war,"  said  Fabius,  shak- 
ing out  the  folds  of  the  toga.  "  With  all  our  hearts 
we  welcome  it,"  cried  the  Carthaginians.  The  Ro- 
mans left  at  once  for  Rome.  Had  they  dreamed 
what  a  war  it  was  they  were  inviting  it  is  doubtful 
if  they  would  have  been  so  hasty  in  seeking  it. 

War  with  Rome  was  what  Hannibal  most  desired. 
He  was  pledged  to  hostility  with  that  faithless  city, 
and  had  assailed  Saguntum  for  the  purpose  of  bring- 
ing it  about.  On  learning  that  war  was  declared,  he 
immediately  prepared  to  invade  Italy  itself,  leading 
his  army  across  the  great  mountain  barrier  of  the 
Alps.  He  had  already  sent  messengers  to  the  Gauls, 
to  invite  their  aid.  They  were  found  to  be  friendly, 
and  eager  for  his  coming.  They  had  little  reason  to 
love  Rome. 

A  significant  dream  strengthened  Hannibal's  pur- 
pose. In  his  vision  he  seemed  to  see  the  supreme 
god  of  his  fathers,  who  called  him  into  the  presence 
of  all  the  gods  of  Carthage,  seated  in  council  on 
their  thrones.  They  solemnly  bade  him  to  invade 
Italy,  and  one  of  the  council  went  with  him  into 
that  land  as  guide.  As  they  passed  onward  the 
divine  guide  warned,  "  See  that  you  look  not  behind 
you."  But  at  length,  heedless  of  the  command, 
the  dreamer  turned  and  looked  back.  He  saw 
behind  him  a  monstrous  form,  covered  thickly  with 
serpents,  while  as  it  moved  houses,  orchards,  and 
woods  fell  crashing  to  the  earth.  "  What  mighty 
thing  is  this?"  he  asked  in  wonder.  "You  see  the 
desolation  of  Italy,"  replied  the  heavenly  guide  ;  "go 
on  your  way,  straight  forward,  and  cast  no  look 


HANNIBAL   CROSSES   THE  ALPS.  139 

behind."  And  thus,  at  the  age  of  twenty-seven, 
Hannibal,  at  the  command  of  his  country's  gods, 
went  forward  to  the  accomplishment  of  his  early 
vow. 

His  route  lay  through  northern  Spain,  where  he 
conquered  all  before  him.  Then  he  marched  through 
Gaul  to  the  Ehone.  This  he  crossed  in  the  face  of 
an  army  of  hostile  Gauls,  who  had  gathered  to  op- 
pose him.  He  had  more  difficulty  with  his  elephants, 
of  which  he  had  thirty-seven.  Rafts  were  built  to 
convey  these  great  beasts  across  the  stream,  but 
some  of  them,  frightened,  leaped  overboard  and 
drowned  their  drivers.  They  then  swam  across 
themselves,  and  all  were  safely  landed. 

Other  difficulties  arose,  but  all  were  overcome,  and 
at  length  the  mountains  were  reached.  Here  Han- 
nibal was  to  perform  the  most  famous  of  his  exploits, 
the  crossing  of  the  great  chain  of  the  Alps  with  an 
army,  an  exploit  more  remarkable  than  that  which 
brought  similar  fame  to  Napoleon  in  our  own  days, 
for  with  Hannibal  it  was  pioneer  work,  while  Napo- 
leon profited  by  his  example. 

The  mountaineers  proved  to  be  hostile,  and 
gathered  at  all  points  that  commanded  the  narrow 
pass.  But  they  left  their  posts  at  night,  and  Hanni- 
bal, when  nightfall  came,  set  out  with  a  body  of  light 
troops  and  occupied  all  these  posts.  When  morning 
dawned  the  natives,  to  their  dismay,  found  that  they 
had  been  outgeneralled. 

Soon  after  the  day  began  the  head  of  the  army 
entered  a  dangerous  defile,  and  made  its  way  in  a 
long  slender  line  along  the  terrace-like  path  which 


140  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

overhung  the  valley  far  below.  The  route  proved 
comparatively  easy  for  the  foot-soldiers,  but  the 
cavalry  and  the  baggage-animals  only  made  their 
way  with  great  difficulty,  finding  obstacles  at  almost 
every  step. 

The  sight  of  the  struggling  cavalcade  was  too 
much  for  the  caution  of  the  natives.  Here  was 
abundant  plunder  at  their  hands.  From  many 
points  of  the  mountain  above  the  road  they  rushed 
down  upon  the  Carthaginians,  arms  in  hand.  A 
frightful  disorder  followed.  So  narrow  was  the  path 
that  the  least  confusion  was  likely  to  throw  the 
heavily-laden  baggage-animals  down  the  precipitous 
steep.  The  cavalry  horses,  wounded  by  the  arrows 
and  javelins  of  the  mountaineers,  plunged  wildly 
about  and  doubled  the  confusion. 

It  was  fortunate  for  Hannibal  that  he  had  taken 
the  precaution  of  the  night  before.  From  the  post 
he  had  taken  with  his  light  troops  the  whole  scene 
of  peril  and  disorder  was  visible  to  his  eyes.  Charg- 
ing down  the  hill,  he  attacked  the  mountaineers  and 
drove  them  from  their  prey.  But  it  was  a  dearly 
bought  victory,  for  the  fight  on  the  narrow  road  in- 
creased the  confusion,  and  in  seeking  the  relief  of 
his  army  he  caused  the  destruction  of  many  of  his 
own  men. 

At  length  the  perilous  defile  was  safely  passed, 
and  the  army  reached  a  wide  and  rich  valley  beyond. 
Here  was  the  town  of  Montmelian,  the  principal 
stronghold  of  the  mountaineers.  This  Hannibal 
took  by  storm,  and  recovered  there  many  of  his  own 
men,  horses,  and  cattle  which  the  natives  had  taken, 


HANNIBAL   CROSSES   THE   ALPS.  141 

while  he  found  an  abundant  store  of  food  for  the  use 
of  his  weary  soldiers. 

After  a  day's  rest  here  the  march  was  resumed. 
During  the  next  three  days  the  army  moved  up  the 
valley  of  the  river  Isere  without  difficulty.  The 
natives  met  them  with  wreaths  on  their  heads  and 
branches  in  their  hands,  promising  peace,  offering 
hostages,  and  supplying  cattle.  Hannibal  mistrusted 
the  sudden  friendliness  of  his  late  foes,  but  they 
seemed  so  honest  that  he  accepted  some  of  them  as 
guides  through  a  difficult  region  which  he  was  now 
approaching. 

He  had  reason  for  his  mistrust,  for  they  treacher- 
ously led  him  into  a  narrow  and  dangerous  defile, 
which  might  have  easily  been  avoided ;  and  while 
the  army  was  involved  in  this  straitened  pass  an 
attack  was  suddenly  made  by  the  whole  force  of  the 
mountaineers.  Climbing  along  the  mountain-sides 
above  the  defile,  they  hurled  down  stones  on  the  en- 
tangled foe,  and  loosened  and  rolled  great  rocks 
down  upon  their  defenceless  heads. 

Fortunately  Hannibal,  moved  by  his  doubts,  had 
sent  his  cavalry  and  baggage  on  first.  The  attack 
fell  on  the  infantry,  and  with  a  body  of  these  he 
forced  his  way  to  the  summit  of  one  of  the  cliffs 
above  the  defile,  drove  away  the  foe,  and  held  it 
while  the  army  made  its  way  slowly  on.  As  for  the 
elephants,  they  were  safe  from  attack.  The  very 
Bight  of  these  huge  beasts  filled  the  barbarians  with 
such  terror  that  they  dared  not  even  approach  them. 
There  was  no  further  peril,  and  on  the  ninth  day  of 
its  march  the  army  reached  the  summit  of  the  Alps. 


142  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

It  was  now  the  end  of  October.  The  grass  and 
flowers  which  carpet  that  elevated  spot  in  summer 
had  become  replaced  by  snow.  In  truth,  the  climate 
of  the  Alps  was  colder  at  that  period  than  now,  and 
snow  lay  on  the  higher  passes  all  through  the  year. 
The  soldiers  were  disheartened  by  cold  and  fatigue. 
The  scene  around  them  was  desolate  and  dreary. 
New  perils  awaited  their  onward  course.  But  no 
such  feeling  entered  Hannibal's  courageous  soul. 
Fired  by  hope  and  ambition,  he  sought  to  plant  new 
courage  in  the  hearts  of  his  men. 

"The  valley  you  see  yonder  is  Italy,"  he  said, 
pointing  to  the  sunny  slope  which,  from  their 
elevated  position,  appeared  not  far  away.  "  It  leads 
to  the  country  of  our  friends,  the  Gauls ;  and  yonder 
is  our  way  to  Home."  Their  eyes  followed  the 
direction  of  his  pointing  hand,  and  their  hearts  grew 
hopeful  again  with  the  cheerfulness  and  enthusiasm 
of  his  words. 

Two  days  the  army  remained  there,  resting,  and 
waiting  for  the  stragglers  to  come  up.  Then  the 
route  was  resumed. 

The  mountaineers,  severely  punished,  made  no 
further  attacks;  but  the  road  proved  more  difficult 
than  that  by  which  the  ascent  had  been  made. 
Snow  thickly  covered  the  passes.  Men  and  horses 
often  lost  their  way,  and  plunged  to  their  death 
down  the  precipitous  steep.  Onward  struggled  the 
distressed  host,  through  appalling  dangers  and  end- 
less difficulties,  losing  men  and  animals  at  every  step. 
But  these  troubles  were  trifling  compared  with  those 
which  they  were  now  to  endure.  They  suddenly 


HANNIBAL    CROSSES   THE   ALPS.  143 

found  that  the  track  before  them  had  entirely  dis- 
appeared. An  avalanche  had  carried  it  bodily  away 
for  about  three  hundred  yards,  leaving  only  a  steep 
and  impassable  slope  covered  with  loose  rocks  and 
snow. 

A  man  of  less  resolution  than  Hannibal  might 
well  have  succumbed  before  this  supreme  difficulty. 
The  way  forward  had  vanished.  To  go  back  was 
death.  It  was  impossible  to  climb  round  the  lost 
path,  for  the  heights  above  were  buried  deep  in  snow. 
Nothing  remained  but  to  perish  where  they  were,  or 
to  make  a  new  road  across  the  mountain's  flank. 

The  energetic  commander  lost  not  an  hour  in 
deciding.  Moving  back  to  a  space  of  somewhat 
greater  breadth,  the  snow  was  removed  and  the 
army  encamped.  Then  the  difficult  engineering 
work  began.  Hands  were  abundant,  for  every  man 
was  working  for  his  life.  Tools  were  improvised. 
So  energetically  did  the  soldiers  work  that  the  road 
rapidly  grew  before  them.  As  it  was  cut  into  the 
rock  it  was  supported  by  solid  foundations  below. 
Many  ancient  authors  say  that  Hannibal  used  vine- 
gar to  soften  the  rocks,  but  this  we  have  no  suffi- 
cient reason  to  believe. 

So  vigorously  did  the  work  go  on,  so  many  were 
the  hands  engaged,  that  in  a  single  day  a  track  was 
made  over  which  the  horses  and  baggage-animals 
could  pass.  These  were  sent  over  and  reached  the 
lower  valley  in  safety,  where  pasture  was  found. 

The  passage  of  the  elephants  was  a  more  difficult 
task.  The  road  for  them  must  be  solid  and  wide.  It 
took  three  days  of  hard  labor  to  make  it.  Mean- 


144  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

while  the  great  beasts  suffered  severely  from  hunger, 
for  forage  there  was  none,  nor  trees  on  whose  leaves 
they  might  browse. 

At  length  the  road  was  strong  enough  to  bear 
them.  They  safely  passed  the  perilous  reach.  After 
them  came  Hannibal  with  the  rear  of  the  army,  soon 
reaching  the  cavalry  and  baggage.  Three  days  more 
the  wearied  host  struggled  on,  down  the  southward 
slopes  of  the  Alps,  until  finally  they  reached  the 
wide  plain  of  Northern  Italy,  having  safely  accom- 
plished the  greatest  military  feat  of  ancient  times. 

But  Hannibal  found  himself  here  with  a  frightfully 
reduced  army.  The  Alps  had  taken  toll  of  their 
invader.  He  had  reached  Gaul  from  Spain  with  fifty 
thousand  foot  and  nine  thousand  horse.  He  reached 
Italy  with  only  twenty  thousand  foot  and  six  thou- 
sand horse.  No  fewer  than  thirty-three  thousand 
men  had  perished  by  the  way.  It  was  a  puny  force 
with  which  to  invade  a  country  that  could  oppose 
it  with  hundreds  of  thousands  of  men.  But  it  had 
Hannibal  at  its  head. 


HOW  HANNIBAL  FOUGHT  AND 
DIED. 

THE  career  of  Hannibal  was  a  remarkable  one. 
For  fifteen  years  he  remained  in  Italy,  frequently 
fighting,  never  losing  a  battle,  keeping  Eome  in  a 
state  of  terror,  and  dwelling  with  his  army  in  com- 
fort and  plenty  on  the  rich  Italian  plains.  Yet  he 
represented  a  commercial  city  against  a  warlike 
state.  He  was  poorly  supported  by  Carthage ; 
Eome  was  indomitable ;  great  generals  rose  to  com- 
mand her  armies ;  in  the  end  the  mighty  effort  of 
Hannibal  failed,  and  he  was  forced  to  leave  Rome 
un conquered  and  Italy  unsubdued. 

The  story  of  his  deeds  is  a  long  one,  a  record  of 
war  and  bloodshed  which  our  readers  would  be  little 
the  wiser  and  none  the  better  for  hearing.  We  shall 
therefore  only  give  it  in  the  barest  outline. 

Hannibal  defeated  the  Romans  on  first  meeting 
them,  and  the  Gauls  flocked  to  his  army.  But  of 
the  elephants,  which  he  had  brought  with  such  dif- 
ficulty over  the  Rhone  and  the  Alps,  the  cold  of 
December  killed  all  but  one.  But  without  them  he 
met  a  large  Roman  army  at  Lake  Trasi menus,  and 
defeated  it  so  utterly  that  but  six  thousand  escaped. 

Rome,  in  alarm,  chose  a  dictator,  Fabius  Maximus 
by  name.  This  leader  adopted  a  new  method  of 
ii.— Q  k  13  145 


146  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

warfare,  which  has  ever  since  been  famous  as  the 
"  Fabian  policy."  This  was  the  policy  of  avoiding 
battle  and  seeking  to  wear  the  enemy  out,  while 
harassing  him  at  every  opportunity.  Fabius  kept 
to  the  hills,  followed  and  annoyed  his  great  antag- 
onist, yet  steadily  avoided  being  drawn  into  battle. 

For  more  than  a  year  this  continued,  during  all 
which  time  Fabius  grew  more  and  more  unpopular 
at  Rome.  The  waiting  policy  was  not  that  which 
the  Romans  had  hitherto  employed,  and  they  be- 
came more  impatient  as  days  and  months  passed 
without  an  effort  to  drive  this  eating  ulcer  from 
their  plains.  In  time  the  discontent  grew  too  strong 
to  be  ignored.  A  man  of  business,  who  was  said  to 
have  begun  life  as  a  butcher's  son,  Varro  by  name, 
became  the  favorite  leader  of  the  populace,  and  was 
in  time  raised  to  the  consulship.  He  enlisted  a  pow- 
erful army,  ninety  thousand  strong,  and  marched 
away  to  the  field  of  Cannae,  where  Hannibal  was  en- 
camped, with  the  purpose  of  driving  this  Cartha- 
ginian wasp  from  the  Italian  fields. 

It  was  a  dwarf  contending  with  a  giant.  The 
vainglorious  Varro  gave  Hannibal  the  opportunity 
for  which  he  had  long  waited.  The  Roman  army 
met  with  such  a  crushing  defeat  that  its  equal  is 
scarcely  known  in  history.  Baffled,  beaten,  and  sur- 
rounded by  Hannibal's  army,  the  Romans  were  cut 
down  in  thousands,  no  quarter  being  asked  or  given, 
till  when  the  sun  set  scarce  three  thousand  men 
were  left  alive  and  unhurt  of  Varro's  hopeful  host. 
Of  Hannibal's  army  less  than  six  thousand  had 
fallen.  Of  the  Roman  forces  more  than  eighty  thou- 


HOW   HANNIBAL   FOUGHT  AND   DIED.  147 

eand  paid  the  penalty  of  their  leader's  incompe- 
tence. 

Hannibal  did  not  advance  to  Rome,  which  seemed 
to  lie  helpless  before  him.  He  doubtless  had  good 
reasons  for  not  attempting  to  capture  it.  Maharbal, 
his  cavalry  general,  said,  "  Let  me  advance  with  the 
horse,  and  do  you  follow;  in  four  days  from  this 
time  you  shall  sup  in  the  Capitol."  Hannibal,  on 
the  contrary,  sent  terms  of  peace  to  Rome.  These 
the  Romans,  unconquerable  in  spirit  despite  their 
disaster,  refused.  He  then  marched  to  southern 
Italy  and  established  his  head-quarters  in  the  rich 
city  of  Capua,  which  opened  its  gates  to  him,  and 
which  he  promised  to  make  the  capital  of  all  Italy. 

Hannibal  won  no  more  great  victories  in  Italy, 
though  he  was  victor  in  many  small  conflicts.  The 
Romans  had  paid  dearly  for  their  impatience. 
Fabius  was  again  called  to  the  head  of  the  army, 
and  his  old  policy  was  restored.  And  thus  years 
went  on,  Hannibal's  army  gradually  decreasing  and 
receiving  few  reinforcements  from  home,  while 
Rome  in  time  regained  Capua  and  other  cities. 

At  length,  in  the  year  208  B.C.,  Hasdrubal,  the 
brother  of  Hannibal,  who  commanded  the  Cartha- 
ginian armies  in  Spain,  resolved  to  go  to  his  brother's 
aid.  He  crossed  the  Alps,  as  Hannibal  had  done, 
following  the  same  pass,  and  making  use  of  the 
bridges,  rock  cuttings,  and  mountain  roads  which 
his  brother  had  made  eleven  years  before. 

Had  this  movement  been  successful,  it  might  have 
been  the  ruin  of  Rome.  But  the  despatches  of  Has- 
drubal were  intercepted  by  the  Romans.  Perceiving 


148  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

their  great  danger,  they  raised  an  army  in  haste, 
marched  against  the  invader,  and  met  him  before 
he  could  effect  a  junction  with  his  brother.  The 
Carthaginians  were  defeated  with  great  slaughter. 
Hasdrubal  fell  on  the  field,  and  his  head  was  cruelly 
sent  to  Hannibal,  who,  as  he  looked  with  bitter  an- 
guish on  the  gruesome  spectacle,  sadly  remarked, 
"  I  recognize  in  this  the  doom  of  Carthage." 

Yet  for  four  years  more  Hannibal  remained  in 
the  mountains  of  Southern  Italy,  holding  his  own 
against  Rome,  though  he  had  lost  all  hopes  of  con- 
quering that  city.  But  Rome  had  now  a  new  gen- 
eral, with  a  new  policy.  This  was  the  famous  Scipio, 
and  the  policy  was  to  carry  the  war  into  Carthage. 
Fabius  had  done  his  work,  and  new  measures  came 
with  new  men.  Scipio  led  an  army  into  Spain, 
which  he  conquered  from  Carthage.  Then  he  in- 
vaded Africa,  and  Hannibal  was  recalled  home,  after 
his  long  and  victorious  career  in  Italy. 

Hannibal  had  never  yet  suffered  a  defeat.  He 
was  now  to  experience  a  crushing  one.  With  a  new 
army,  largely  made  up  of  raw  levies,  he  met  the 
veteran  troops  of  Scipio  on  the  plains  of  Zama. 
Hannibal  displayed  here  his  usual  ability,  but  for- 
tune was  against  him,  his  army  was  routed,  the  vet- 
erans he  had  brought  from  Italy  were  cut  down 
where  they  stood,  and  he  escaped  with  difficulty 
from  the  field  on  which  twenty  thousand  of  his  men 
had  fallen.  It  was  an  earlier  Waterloo. 

His  flight  was  necessary,  if  Carthage  was  to  be 
preserved.  He  was  the  only  man  capable  of  saving 
that  great  city  from  ruin.  Terms  of  peace  were 


HOW   HANNIBAL   FOUGHT  AND  DIED.  149 

offered  by  Scipio,  severe  ones,  but  Hannibal  accepted 
them,  knowing  that  nothing  else  could  be  done. 
Then  he  devoted  himself  to  the  restoration  of  his 
country's  power,  and  for  seven  years  worked  dili- 
gently to  this  end. 

His  efforts  were  successful.  Carthage  again  be- 
came prosperous.  Rome  trembled  for  fear  of  her 
old  foe.  Commissioners  were  sent  to  Carthage  to 
demand  the  surrender  of  Hannibal,  on  the  plea  that 
he  was  secretly  fomenting  a  new  war.  His  reforms 
had  made  enemies  in  Carthage,  his  liberty  was  in 
danger,  and  nothing  remained  for  him  but  to  flee. 

Escaping  secretly  from  the  city,  the  fugitive  made 
his  way  to  Tyre,  the  mother-city  of  Carthage,  where 
he  was  received  as  one  who  had  shed  untold  glory 
on  the  Phoenician  name.  Thence  he  proceeded  to 
Antioch,  the  capital  of  Antiochus,  king  of  Syria,  and 
one  of  the  successors  of  Alexander  the  Great. 

During  the  period  over  which  we  have  so  rapidly 
passed  the  empire  of  Rome  had  been  steadily  ex- 
tending. In  addition  to  her  conquests  in  Spain  and 
Africa,  Macedonia,  the  home-realm  of  Alexander  the 
Great,  had  been  successfully  invaded,  and  the  first 
great  step  taken  by  Rome  towards  the  conquest  of 
the  East. 

The  loss  of  Macedonia  stirred  up  Antiochus,  who 
resolved  on  war  with  Rome,  and  marched  with  his 
army  towards  Europe.  Hannibal,  who  had  failed  to 
find  him  at  Antioch.  overtook  him  at  Ephesus,  and 
found  him  glad  enough  to  secure  the  services  of  a 
warrior  of  such  world-wide  fame. 

Antiochus,  unfortunately,  was  the  reverse  of  a 
13* 


150  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

great  warrior,  and  by  no  means  the  man  to  cope 
with  Rome.  Hannibal  saw  at  a  glance  that  his 
army  was  not  fit  to  fight  with  a  Eoman  force,  and 
strongly  advised  him  to  equip  a  fleet  and  invade 
Southern  Italy,  saying  that  he  himself  would  take 
the  command.  But  nothing  was  to  be  done  with 
Antiochus.  He  was  filled  with  conceit  of  his  own 
greatness,  was  ignorant  of  the  power  of  Rome,  and 
was  jealous  of  the  glory  which  Hannibal  might  at- 
tain. His  guest  then  advised  that  an  alliance  should 
be  made  with  Philip,  king  of  Macedonia.  This,  too, 
was  neglected,  and  the  Romans  hastened  to  ally 
themselves  with  Philip.  Antiochus,  puffed  up  with 
pride,  pointed  to  his  great  army,  and  asked  Hanni- 
bal if  he  did  not  think  that  these  were  enough  for 
the  Romans. 

"  Yes,"  he  replied,  sarcastically,  "  enough  for  the 
Romans,  however  greedy  they  may  be." 

It  proved  as  he  feared.  The  Romans  triumphed. 
Hannibal  was  employed  only  in  a  subordinate  naval 
command,  in  which  field  of  warfare  he  had  no  ex- 
perience. Peace  was  made,  and  Antiochus  agreed 
to  deliver  him  up  to  Rome.  The  greatest  of  Rome's 
enemies  was  again  forced  to  fly  for  his  life. 

Hannibal  now  took  refuge  with  Prusias,  king  of  Bi- 
thynia.  Here  he  remained  for  five  years.  But  even 
here  the  implacable  enmity  of  Rome  followed  him. 
Envoys  were  sent  to  the  court  of  Prusias  to  demand 
his  surrender.  Prusias,  who  was  a  king  on  a  small 
scale,  could  not,  or  would  not,  defend  his  guest,  and 
promised  to  deliver  him  into  the  hands  of  his  unre- 
lenting foes. 


o' 


HOW    HANNIBAL   FOUGHT   AND   DIED.  151 

Only  one  course  remained.  Death  was  tenfold 
preferable  to  figuring  in  a  Roman  triumph.  Find- 
ing the  avenues  to  his  house  secured  by  the  king's 
guards,  the  great  Carthaginian  took  poison,  which 
he  is  said  to  have  long  carried  with  him  in  a  ring, 
in  readiness  for  such  an  emergency.  He  died  at 
Libyssa,  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the  sea  of  Mar- 
mora, in  his  sixty -fourth  year,  as  closely  as  we  know. 
In  the  same  year,  183  B.C.,  died  his  great  and  suc- 
cessful antagonist,  Scipio  Africanus. 

Thus  perished,  in  exile,  one  of  the  greatest  warriors 
of  any  age,  who,  almost  without  aid  from  home,  sup- 
ported himself  for  fifteen  years  in  Italy  against  all 
the  power  of  Rome  and  the  greatest  generals  she 
could  supply.  Had  Carthage  shown  the  military 
spirit  of  Rome,  Hannibal  might  have  stopped  effect- 
ually the  conquering  career  of  that  warlike  city. 


ARCHIMEDES  AT  THE  SIEGE 
OF  SYRACUSE. 


THE  city  of  Syracuse,  the  capital  of  Sicily,  rose  to 
prominence  in  ancient  history  through  its  three 
famous  sieges.  The  first  of  these  was  that  long 
siege  which  ruined  Athens  and  left  Syracuse  un- 
captured.  The  second  was  the  siege  by  Timoleon, 
who  took  the  city  almost  without  a  blow.  The  third 
was  the  siege  by  the  Romans,  in  which  the  genius  of 
one  man,  the  celebrated  mathematician  and  engineer 
Archimedes,  long  set  at  naught  all  the  efforts  of  the 
besieging  army  and  fleet. 

This  remarkable  defence  took  place  during  the 
wars  with  Hannibal.  Such  was  the  warlike  energy 
of  the  Romans,  that,  while  their  city  itself  was 
threatened  by  this  great  general,  they  sent  armies 
abroad,  one  into  Spain  and  another  into  Sicily. 
The  latter,  under  a  consul  named  Appius,  besieged 
Syracuse  by  sea  and  land.  Hoping  to  take  the  city 
by  sudden  assault,  before  it  could  be  properly  got 
ready  for  defence,  Appius  pushed  forward  his  land 
force,  fully  provided  with  blinds  and  ladders,  against 
the  walls.  At  the  same  time  a  fleet  of  sixty  quin- 
queremes  under  the  consul  Marcellus  advanced  to 
the  assault  from  the  side  of  the  harbor.  Among  the?e 
vessels  were  eight  which  had  been  joined  together 
152 


ARCHIMEDES   AT   THE   SIEGE   OF   SYRACUSE.       153 

two  and  two,  and  which  carried  machines  called 
sackbuts.  These  consisted  of  immensely  long  lad- 
ders, projecting  far  beyond  the  bows,  and  so  arranged 
that  they  could  be  raised  by  ropes  and  pulleys,  and 
the  end  let  fall  upon  the  top  of  the  wall.  Four 
men,  well  protected  by  wooden  blinds,  occupied  the 
top  of  each  ladder,  ready  to  attack  the  defenders 
of  the  walls  while  their  comrades  hastened  up  the 
ladder  to  their  aid. 

There  was  only  one  thing  on  which  the  consuls 
had  not  counted,  and  that  was  that  Syracuse  pos- 
sessed the  greatest  artificer  of  ancient  times.  The}' 
had  to  fight  not  Syracuse  alone  but  Syracuse  and 
Archimedes;  and  they  found  the  latter  their  most 
formidable  foe.  In  short,  the  skill  of  this  one  man 
did  more  to  baffle  the  Eomans  than  the  strength  and 
courage  of  all  the  garrison. 

The  historian  Polybius  has  so  well  told  the  story 
of  this  famous  defence,  that  we  cannot  do  better 
than  quote  from  his  work.  He  remarks,  after  de- 
scribing at  length  the  Roman  preparations, — 

"  In  this  manner,  then,  when  all  things  were  ready, 
the  Romans  designed  to  attack  the  towers.  But 
Archimedes  had  prepared  machines  that  were  fitted 
to  every  distance.  While  the  vessels  were  yet  far 
removed  from  the  walls,  he,  employing  catapults  and 
balistse  that  were  of  the  largest  size  and  worked  by 
the  strongest  springs,  wounded  the  enemy  with  his 
darts  and  stones,  and  threw  them  into  great  disorder. 
When  the  darts  passed  beyond  them  he  then  used 
other  machines,  of  a  smaller  size,  and  proportioned 
to  the  distance.  By  these  means  the  Romans  were 


154  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

BO  effectually  repulsed  that  it  was  not  possible  for 
them  to  approach. 

"  Marcellus,  therefore,  perplexed  with  this  resist- 
ance, was  forced  to  advance  silently  with  his  vessels 
in  the  night.  But  when  they  came  so  near  to  the 
land  as  to  be  within  the  reach  of  darts,  they  were 
exposed  to  a  new  danger,  which  Archimedes  had 
contrived.  He  had  caused  openings  to  be  made  in 
many  parts  of  the  wall,  equal  in  height  to  the  stature 
of  a  man,  and  to  the  palm  of  the  hand  in  breadth. 
Then,  having  planted  on  the  inside  archers  and  little 
scorpions,  he  discharged  a  multitude  of  arrows 
through  the  openings,  and  disabled  the  soldiers  that 
were  on  board.  In  this  manner,  whether  the 
Romans  were  at  a  great  distance  or  whether  they 
were  near,  he  not  only  rendered  useless  all  their 
efforts,  but  destroyed  also  many  of  their  men. 

"  When  they  attempted  also  to  raise  the  sackbuts, 
certain  machines  which  he  had  erected  along  the 
whole  wall  inside,  and  which  were  before  concealed 
from  view,  suddenly  appeared  above  the  wall  and 
stretched  their  long  beaks  far  beyond  the  battle- 
ments. Some  of  these  machines  carried  masses  of 
lead  and  stone  not  less  than  ten  talents  [about  eight 
hundred  pounds]  in  weight.  Accordingly,  when  the 
vessels  with  the  sackbuts  came  near,  the  beaks,  being 
first  turned  by  ropes  and  pulleys  to  the  proper  point, 
let  fall  their  stones,  which  broke  not  only  the  sack- 
buts but  the  vessels  likewise,  and  threw  all  those 
who  were  on  board  into  the  greatest  danger. 

"  In  the  same  manner  also  the  rest  of  the  machines, 
as  often  as  the  enemy  approached  under  cover  of 


ARCHIMEDES   AT   THE   SIEGE   OP   SYRACUSE.       155 

their  blinds,  and  had  secured  themselves  by  that 
protection  against  the  darts  that  were  discharged 
through  the  openings  in  the  wall,  let  fall  upon  them 
stones  of  so  large  a  size  that  all  the  combatants  on 
the  prow  were  forced  to  retire  from  their  station. 

"  He  invented,  likewise,  a  hand  of  iron,  hanging 
by  a  chain  from  the  beak  of  a  machine,  which  was 
used  in  the  following  manner.  The  person  who,  like 
a  pilot,  guided  the  beak,  having  let  fall  the  hand  and 
caught  hold  of  the  prow  of  any  vessel,  drew  down 
the  opposite  end  of  the  machine,  that  was  inside  of 
the  walls.  When  the  vessel  was  thus  raised  erect 
upon  its  stern,  the  machine  itself  was  held  immov- 
able ;  but  the  chain  being  suddenly  loosened  from  the 
beak  by  means  of  pulleys,  some  of  the  vessels  were 
thrown  upon  their  sides,  others  turned  with  their 
bottoms  upward,  and  the  greatest  part,  as  the  prows 
were  plunged  from  a  considerable  height  into  the  sea, 
were  filled  with  water,  and  all  that  were  on  board 
thrown  into  tumult  and  disorder. 

"Marcellus  was  in  no  small  degree  embarrassed 
when  he  found  himself  encountered  in  every  attempt 
by  such  resistance.  He  perceived  that  all  his  efforts 
were  defeated  with  loss,  and  were  even  derided  by 
the  enemy.  But,  amidst  all  the  anxiety  that  he 
suffered,  he  could  not  help  jesting  upon  the  inven- 
tions of  Archimedes. 

" '  This  man,'  said  he, '  employs  our  ships  as  buckets 
to  draw  water,  and,  boxing  about  our  sackbuts,  as  if 
they  were  unworthy  to  be  associated  with  him, 
drives  them  from  his  company  with  disgrace.'  Such 
was  the  success  of  the  siege  on  the  side  of  the  sea. 


156  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

"  Appius  also,  on  his  part,  having  met  with  the 
same  obstacles  in  his  approaches,  was  in  like  manner 
forced  to  abandon  his  design.  For  while  he  was  yet 
at  a  considerable  distance,  great  number  of  his  men 
were  destroyed  by  the  balistae  and  the  catapults,  so 
wonderful  was  the  quantity  of  stones  and  darts,  and 
so  astonishing  the  force  with  which  they  were 
thrown.  The  means,  indeed,  were  worthy  of  Hiero, 
who  had  furnished  the  expense,  and  of  Archimedes, 
who  designed  them,  and  by  whose  directions  they 
were  made. 

"  If  the  troops  advanced  nearer  to  the  city,  they 
either  were  stopped  in  their  advance  by  the  arrows 
that  were  discharged  through  the  openings  in  the 
walls,  or,  if  they  attempted  to  force  their  way  under 
cover  of  their  bucklers,  they  were  destroyed  by 
stones  and  beams  that  were  let  fall  upon  their  heads. 
Great  mischief  also  was  occasioned  by  these  hands 
of  iron  that  have  been  mentioned;  for  they  lifted 
men  with  their  armor  into  the  air  and  dashed  them 
upon  the  ground.  Appius,  therefore,  was  at  last 
constrained  to  return  back  again  into  his  camp." 

This  ended  the  assault.  For  eight  months  the 
Romans  remained,  but  never  again  had  the  courage 
to  make  a  regular  attack,  depending  rather  on  the 
hope  of  reducing  the  crowded  city  by  famine.  "  So 
wonderful,  and  of  such  importance  on  some  occasions, 
is  the  power  of  a  single  man,  and  the  force  of  science 
properly  employed.  With  so  great  armies  both  by 
sea  and  land  the  Romans  could  scarcely  have  failed 
to  take  the  city,  if  one  old  man  had  been  removed. 
But  while  he  was  present  they  did  not  even  dare  to 


ARCHIMEDES   AT   THE   SIEGE   OF   SYRACUSE.       157 

make  the  attempt;  in  the  manner,  at  least,  which 
Archimedes  was  able  to  oppose."  The  story  was 
told  in  past  times  that  the  great  scientist  set  the 
Eoman  ships  on  fire  by  means  of  powerful  burning 
glasses,  but  this  is  not  believed. 

The  end  of  this  story  may  be  briefly  told.  The 
Romans  finally  took  the  city  by  surprise.  Tradition 
tells  that,  as  the  assailants  were  rushing  through  the 
streets,  with  death  in  their  hands,  they  found  Archi- 
medes sitting  in  the  public  square,  with  a  number 
of  geometrical  figures  drawn  before  him  in  the  sand, 
which  he  was  studying  in  oblivion  of  the  tumult  of 
war  around.  As  a  Eoman  soldier  rushed  upon  him 
sword  in  hand,  he  called  out  to  the  rude  warrior  not 
to  spoil  the  circle.  But  the  soldier  cut  him  down. 
Another  story  says  that  this  took  place  in  his  room. 

When  Cicero,  years  afterwards,  came  to  Syracuse, 
he  found  the  tomb  of  Archimedes  overgrown  with 
briers,  and  on  it  the  figure  of  a  sphere  inscribed  in 
a  cylinder,  to  commemorate  one  of  his  most  impor- 
tant mathematical  discoveries. 


THE  FATE   OF  CARTHAGE. 

IN  all  the  history  of  Rome  there  is  no  act  of  more 
flagrant  treachery  and  cruelty  than  in  her  final 
dealings  with  the  great  rival  city  of  Carthage.  In 
the  whole  history  of  the  world  there  is  nothing 
more  base  and  frightful  than  the  utter  destruction 
of  that  mighty  mart  of  commerce.  The  jealousy  of 
Rome  would  not  permit  a  rival  to  exist.  It  was 
not  enough  to  drive  Hannibal  into  exile ;  Carthage 
was  recovering  her  trade  and  regaining  her  strength ; 
new  Hannibals  might  be  born ;  the  terror  of  the 
great  invasion,  the  remembrance  of  the  defeat  at 
Cannae,  still  remained  in  Roman  memories. 

Cato  the  Censor,  a  famous  old  Roman,  now  eighty- 
four  years  of  age,  and  who  had  served  in  the  wars 
against  Hannibal,  hated  Carthage  with  the  hatred 
of  a  fanatic,  and  declared  that  Rome  would  never 
be  safe  while  this  rival  was  permitted  to  exist. 

Rising  from  his  seat  in  the  senate,  the  stern  old 
man  glowingly  described  the  power  and  wealth  of 
Carthage.  He  held  up  some  great  figs,  and  said, 
"  These  figs  grow  but  three  days'  sail  from  Rome." 
There  could  be  no  safety  for  Rome,  he  declared, 
while  Carthage  survived. 

"Every  speech  which  I  shall  make  in  this  house," 
he  sternly  declared,  "shall  finish  with  these  words: 
158 


THE   FATE   OF   CARTHAGE.  159 

'  My  opinion  is  that  Carthage  must  be  destroyed  (de- 
lenda  est  Carthago.y  " 

These  words  sealed  the  fate  of  Carthage.  Men 
of  moderate  views  spoke  more  mercifully,  but  Cato 
swayed  the  senate,  and  from  that  day  the  doom  of 
Carthage  was  fixed. 

The  Carthaginian  territory  was  being  assailed  and 
ravaged  by  Masinissa,  the  king  of  Numidia.  Eome 
was  appealed  to  for  aid,  but  delayed  and  temporized. 
Carthage  raised  an  army,  which  was  defeated  by 
Masinissa,  then  over  ninety  years  of  age.  The  war 
went  on,  and  Carthage  was  reduced  to  such  straits 
that  resistance  became  impossible,  and  in  the  end 
the  city  and  all  its  possessions  were  placed  at  the 
absolute  disposal  of  the  senate  of  Eome,  which,  ab- 
solutely without  provocation,  had  declared  war. 

An  army  of  eighty  thousand  foot  and  four  thou- 
sand horse  was  sent  to  Africa.  Before  the  consuls 
commanding  it  there  appeared  deputies  from  Car- 
thage, stating  what  acts  of  submission  had  already 
been  made,  and  humbly  asking  what  more  Rome 
could  demand. 

"  Carthage  is  now  under  the  protection  of  Rome," 
answered  Censorinus,  the  consul,  "  and  can  no  longer 
have  occasion  to  engage  in  war ;  she  must  therefore 
deliver  without  reserve  to  Rome  all  her  arms  and 
engines  of  war." 

Hard  as  was  this  condition,  the  humiliated  city 
accepted  it.  We  may  have  some  conception  of  the 
strength  of  the  city  when  it  is  stated  that  the  mili- 
tary stores  given  up  included  two  hundred  thousand 
stand  of  arms  and  two  thousand  catapults.  It  was 


160  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

a  condition  to  which  only  despair  could  have  yielded, 
seemingly  the  last  act  of  humiliation  to  which  any 
city  could  consent. 

But  if  Carthage  thought  that  the  end  had  been 
reached,  she  was  destined  to  be  rudely  awakened 
from  her  dream.  The  consuls,  thinking  the  city 
now  to  be  wholly  helpless,  dropped  the  mask  they 
had  worn,  and  made  known  the  senate's  treacherous 
decree. 

"  The  decision  of  the  senate  is  this,"  said  Censo- 
rinus,  coldly,  to  the  unhappy  envoys  of  Carthage: 
"  so  long  as  you  possess  a  fortified  city  near  the  sea, 
Rome  can  never  feel  sure  of  your  submission.  The 
senate  therefore  decrees  that  you  must  remove  to 
some  point  ten  miles  distant  from  the  coast.  Car- 
thage must  be  destroyed." 

The  trembling  Carthaginians  heard  these  fatal 
words  in  stupefied  amazement.  On  recovering  their 
senses  they  broke  out  into  passionate  exclamations 
against  the  treachery  of  Rome,  and  declared  that 
the  freedom  of  Carthago  had  been  guaranteed. 

"  The  guarantee  refers  to  the  people  of  Carthage, 
not  to  her  houses,"  answered  the  consul.  "  You 
have  heard  the  will  of  the  senate;  it  must  bo 
obeyed,  and  quickly." 

Carthage,  meanwhile,  waited  in  gloomy  dread  the 
return  of  the  commissioners.  When  they  gave  in 
the  council-chamber  the  ultimatum  of  Rome,  a  cry 
of  horror  broke  from  the  councillors.  The  crowd  in 
the  street,  on  hearing  this  ominous  sound,  broke 
open  the  doors  and  demanded  what  fatal  news  had 
been  received. 


THE   FATE   OF   CARTHAGE.  161 

On  being  told,  they  burst  into  a  paroxysm  of 
fury.  The  members  of  the  government  who  had 
submitted  to  Rome  were  obliged  to  fly  for  their 
lives.  Every  Italian  found  in  the  city  was  killed. 
The  party  of  the  people  seized  the  government,  and 
resolved  to  defend  themselves  to  the  uttermost.  AD. 
armistice  of  thirty  days  was  asked  from  the  consuls, 
that  a  deputation  might  be  sent  to  Rome.  This  was 
refused.  Despair  gave  courage  and  strength.  The 
making  of  new  arms  was  energetically  begun.  Tem- 
ples and  public  buildings  were  converted  into  work- 
shops ;  men  and  women  by  thousands  worked  night 
and  day ;  every  day  there  were  produced  one  hun- 
dred shields,  three  hundred  swords,  five  hundred 
pikes  and  javelins,  and  one  thousand  bolts  for  cata- 
pults. The  women  even  cut  off  their  hair  to  be 
twisted  into  strings  for  the  catapults.  Corn  was 
gathered  in  all  haste  from  every  quarter. 

The  consuls  were  astonished  and  disappointed. 
They  had  not  counted  on  such  energy  as  this.  They 
did  not  know  what  it  meant  to  drive  a  foe  to  des- 
peration. They  laid  siege  to  Carthage,  but  found 
it  too  strong  for  all  their  efforts.  They  proceeded 
against  the  Carthaginian  army  in  the  field,  but 
gained  no  success.  Summer  and  winter  passed,  and 
Carthage  still  held  out.  Another  year  (148  B.C.) 
went  by,  and  Rome  still  lost  ground.  Old  Cato, 
the  bitter  foe  of  Carthage,  had  died,  at  the  age 
of  eighty-five.  Masinissa,  the  warlike  Numidian, 
had  died  at  ninety-five.  The  hopes  of  the  Cartha- 
ginians grew.  Those  of  Rome  began  to  fall.  The 
rich  booty  that  was  looked  for  from  the  sack  of 
I  14* 


162  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Carthage  was  not  to  be  handled  so  easily  as  had 
been  expected. 

What  Eome  lacked  was  an  able  general.  One  was 
found  in  Scipio,  the  adopted  son  of  Publius  Scipio, 
son  of  the  great  Scipio  Africanus.  This  young  man 
had  proved  himself  the  only  able  soldier  in  the  war. 
The  army  adored  him.  Though  too  young  for  the 
consulship,  he  was  elected  to  that  high  office,  and  in 
147  B.C.  sailed  for  Carthage. 

The  new  commander  found  the  army  disorgan- 
ized, and  immediately  restored  strict  discipline  to  its 
ranks.  The  suburb  of  Megara,  from  which  the 
people  of  the  city  obtained  their  chief  supply  of 
fresh  provisions,  was  quickly  taken.  Want  of  food 
began  to  be  felt.  The  isthmus  which  connected  the 
city  with  the  mainland  was  strongly  occupied,  and 
land-supplies  were  thus  cut  off.  The  fleet  blockaded 
the  harbor,  but,  as  vessels  still  made  their  way  in, 
Scipio  determined  to  build  an  embankment  across 
the  harbor's  mouth. 

This  was  a  work  of  great  labor,  and  slowly  pro- 
ceeded. By  the  time  it  was  done  the  Carthaginians 
had  cut  a  new  channel  from  their  harbor  to  the  sea, 
and  Scipio  had  the  mortification  to  see  a  newly- 
built  fleet  of  fifty  ships  sail  out  through  this  fresh 
passage.  On  the  third  day  a  naval  battle  took  place, 
in  which  the  greater  part  of  the  new  fleet  was 
destroyed. 

Another  winter  came  and  went.  It  was  not  until 
the  spring  of  146  B.C.  that  the  Romans  succeeded  in 
forcing  their  way  into  the  city,  and  their  legions 
bivouacked  in  the  Forum  of  Carthage. 


THE   FATE   OF   CARTHAGE.  163 

But  Carthage  was  not  yet  taken.  Its  death- 
struggle  was  to  be  a  desperate  one.  The  streets 
leading  from  the  Forum  towards  the  Citadel  were 
all  strongly  barricaded,  and  the  houses,  six  stories 
in  height,  occupied  by  armed  men.  For  three  days 
a  war  of  desperation  was  waged  in  the  streets.  The 
Romans  had  to  take  the  first  houses  of  each  street 
by  assault,  and  then  force  their  way  forward  by 
breaking  from  house  to  house.  The  cross  streets 
were  passed  on  bridges  of  planks. 

Thus  they  slowly  advanced  till  the  wall  of  Bosra 
— the  high  ground  of  the  Citadel — was  reached. 
Behind  them  the  city  was  in  flames.  For  six  days 
and  nights  it  burned,  destroying  the  wealth  and 
works  of  years.  When  the  fire  declined  passages 
were  cleared  through  the  ruins  for  the  army  to 
advance. 

Scipio,  who  had  scarcely  slept  night  or  day  during 
the  assault,  now  lay  down  for  a  short  repose,  on  an 
eminence  from  which  could  be  seen  the  Temple  of 
Esculapius,  whose  gilded  roof  glittered  on  the  highest 
point  of  the  hill  of  Bosra.  He  was  aroused  to  re- 
ceive an  offer  from  the  garrison  to  surrender  if  their 
lives  were  spared.  Scipio  consented  to  spare  all  but 
Roman  deserters,  and  from  the  gates  of  the  Citadel 
marched  out  fifty  thousand  men  as  prisoners  of  war. 

Hasdrubal,  the  Carthaginian  commander,  who  had 
made  so  brave  a  defence  against  Rome,  retired  with 
his  family  and  nine  hundred  deserters  and  others 
into  the  Temple  of  Esculapius,  as  if  to  make  a  final 
desperate  defence.  But  his  heart  failed  him  at  the 
last  moment,  and,  slipping  -out  alone,  he  cast  him- 


164  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

self  at  Scipio's  feet,  and  begged  his  pardon  and  mercy. 
His  wife,  who  saw  his  dastardly  act,  reproached  him 
bitterly  for  cowardice,  and  threw  herself  and  her 
children  into  the  flames  which  enveloped  the  Cit- 
adel. Most  of  the  deserters  perished  in  the  same 
flames. 

"  Assyria  has  fallen,"  said  Scipio,  as  he  looked  with 
eyes  of  prevision  on  the  devouring  flames.  "  Persia 
and  Macedonia  have  likewise  fallen.  Carthage  is 
burning.  The  day  of  Rome's  fall  may  come  next." 

For  five  days  the  soldiers  plundered  the  city,  yet 
enough  of  statues  and  other  valuables  remained  to 
yield  the  consul  a  magnificent  triumph  on  his  return 
to  Rome.  Before  doing  so  be  celebrated  the  fall  of 
Carthage  with  grand  games,  in  which  the  spoil  of 
that  great  city  was  shown  the  army.  To  Rome  he 
sent  the  brief  despatch,  "  Carthage  is  taken.  The 
army  waits  for  further  orders." 

The  orders  sent  were  that  the  walls  should  be 
destroyed  and  every  house  levelled  to  the  ground. 
A  curse  was  pronounced  by  Scipio  on  any  one  who 
should  seek  to  build  a  town  on  the  site.  The  curse 
did  not  prove  effective.  Julius  Caesar  afterwards 
projected  a  new  Carthage,  and  Augustus  built  it. 
It  grew  to  be  a  noble  city,  and  in  the  third  century 
A.D.  became  one  of  the  principal  cities  of  the  Roman 
empire  and  the  chief  seat  of  Western  Christianity 
It  was  finally  destroyed  by  the  Arabs. 


THE   GRACCHI  AND    THEIR 
FALL. 

IN  the  assault  by  the  Roman  forces  on  Megara, 
the  suburb  of  Carthage,  the  first  to  mount  the  wall 
was  a  young  man  named  Tiberius  Gracchus,  brother- 
in-law  of  Scipio,  the  commander,  and  grandson  of 
the  famous  Scipio  Africanus.  This  young  man  and 
his  brother  were  to  play  prominent  parts  in  Rome. 

One  day  when  the  great  Scipio  was  feasting  in  the 
Capitol,  with  other  senators  of  Rome,  be  was  asked 
by  some  friends  to  give  his  daughter  Cornelia  in 
marriage  to  Tiberius  Gracchus,  a  young  plebeian. 
Proud  patrician  as  he  was,  he  consented,  for  Grac- 
chus was  highly  esteemed  for  probity,  and  had  done 
him  a  personal  service. 

On  his  return  home  he  told  his  wife  that  he  had 
promised  his  daughter  to  a  plebeian.  The  good 
woman,  who  had  higher  aims,  blamed  him  severely 
for  his  folly,  as  she  deemed  it.  But  when  she  was 
told  the  name  of  her  proposed  son-in-law  she  changed 
her  mind,  saying  that  Gracchus  was  the  only  man 
worthy  of  the  gift. 

There  were  three  children  from  this  marriage,  a 
daughter,  who  became  the  wife  of  the  younger 
Scipio,  and  two  sons,  Tiberius  and  Cains  Gracchus, 
who  are  known  in  history  as  "The  Gracchi."  Their 

165 


166  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

father  became  famous  in  war  and  peace,  taking  im« 
portant  steps  in  the  needed  movement  of  reform. 
He  died,  and  after  his  death  many  sought  the  hand 
of  the  noble  Cornelia  in  marriage,  among  them  King 
Ptolemy  of  Egypt.  But  she  refused  them  all,  de- 
voting her  life  to  the  education  of  her  children,  for 
which  she  was  admirably  fitted  by  her  lofty  spirit 
and  high  attainments. 

Concerning  this  lady,  one  of  the  greatest  and 
noblest  which  Rome  produced,  there  is  an  anecdote, 
ofien  repeated,  yet  well  worth  repeating  again.  A 
Campanian  lady  who  called  upon  her,  and  boastfully 
spoke  of  her  wealth  in  gold  and  precious  stones, 
asked  Cornelia  for  the  pleasure  of  seeing  her  jewels. 
Leading  her  visitor  to  another  room,  the  noble 
matron  pointed  to  her  sleeping  children,  and  said, 
"  There  are  my  jewels ;  the  only  ones  of  which  I  am 
proud." 

These  children  were  born  to  troublous  times. 
Rome  had  grown  in  corruption  and  ostentation  as 
she  had  grown  in  wealth  and  dominion.  When  the 
first  Punic  War  broke  out  Rome  ruled  only  over 
Central  and  Southern  Italy.  When  the  third  Punic 
War  ended  Rome  was  lord  of  all  Italy,  Spain,  and 
Greece,  and  had  wide  possessions  in  Asia  Minor  and 
Northern  Africa.  Wealth  had  flowed  abundantly 
into  the  imperial  city,  and  with  it  pride,  corruption, 
and  oppression.  The  great  grew  greater,  the  poor 
poorer,  and  the  old  simplicity  and  frugality  of  Rome 
were  replaced  by  overweening  luxury  and  greed  of 
wealth. 

The  younger  Tiberius  Gracchus,  who  was  nine 


THE   GRACCHI  AND   THEIR   PALL.  167 

years  older  than  his  brother,  after  taking  part  in  the 
siege  of  Carthage,  went  to  Spain,  where  also  was 
work  for  a  soldier.  On  his  way  thither  he  passed 
through  Etruria,  and  saw  that  in  the  fields  the  old 
freeman  farmers  had  disappeared,  and  been  replaced 
by  foreign  slaves,  who  worked  with  chains  upon  their 
limbs.  No  Cincinnatus  now  ploughed  his  own  small 
fields,  but  the  land  was  divided  up  into  great  estates, 
cultivated  by  the  captives  taken  in  war ;  while  the 
poor  Eomans,  by  whose  courage  these  lands  had 
been  won,  had  not  a  foot  of  soil  to  call  their  own. 

This  spectacle  was  a  sore  one  to  Tiberius,  in  whose 
mind  the  wise  teachings  of  his  mother  had  sunk 
deep.  Here  were  great  spaces  of  fertile  land  lying 
untilled,  broad  parks  for  the  ostentation  of  their 
proud  possessors,  while  thousands  of  Eomans  lan- 
guished in  poverty,  and  Eome  had  begun  to  depend 
for  food  largely  upon  distant  realms. 

There  was  a  law,  more  than  two  hundred  years 
old,  which  forbade  any  man  from  holding  such  large 
tracts  of  land.  Tiberius  thought  that  this  law  should 
be  enforced.  On  his  return  to  Eome  his  indignant 
eloquence  soon  roused  trouble  in  that  city  of  rich  and 
poor. 

"The  wild  beasts  of  the  waste  have  their  caves 
and  dens,"  he  said ;  "  but  you,  the  people  of  Eome, 
who  have  fought  and  bled  for  its  growth  and  glory, 
have  nothing  left  you  but  the  air  and  the  sunlight. 
There  are  far  too  many  Eomans,"  he  continued, 
"  who  have  no  family  altar  nor  ancestral  tomb. 
They  have  fought  well  for  Eome,  and  are  falsely 
called  the  masters  of  the  world ;  but  the  results  of 


168  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

their  fighting  can  only  be  seen  in  the  luxury  of  the 
great,  while  not  one  of  them  has  a  clod  of  dirt  to 
call  his  own." 

Cornelia  urged  her  son  to  do  some  work  to  ennoble 
his  name  and  benefit  Home. 

"  I  am  called  the  '  daughter  of  Scipio,'  "  she  said. 
"  I  wish  to  be  known  as  '  the  mother  of  the  Gracchi.'  " 

It  was  not  personal  glory,  but  the  good  of  Eome, 
th&t  the  young  reformer  sought.  He  presented  him- 
self for  the  office  of  tribune,  and  was  elected  by  the 
people,  who  looked  upon  him  as  their  friend  and  ad- 
vocate. And  at  his  appeal  they  crowded  from  all 
quarters  into  the  city  to  vote  for  the  re-establishment 
of  the  Licinian  laws, — those  forbidding  the  rich  to 
hold  great  estates. 

These  laws  were  re-enacted,  and  those  lands  which 
the  aristocrats  had  occupied  by  fraud  or  force  were 
taken  from  them  by  a  commission  and  returned  to 
the  state. 

All  this  stirred  the  proud  land-holders  to  fury. 
They  hated  Gracchus  with  a  bitter  hatred,  and  began 
to  plot  secretly  for  his  overthrow.  About  this  time 
Attalus,  king  of  Pergamus,  moved  by  some  erratic 
whim,  left  his  estates  by  will  to  the  city  of  Rome. 
Those  who  had  been  deprived  of  their  lands  claimed 
these  estates,  to  repay  them  for  their  outlays  in  im- 
provement. Gracchus  opposed  this,  and  proposed  to 
divide  this  property  among  the  plebeians,  that  they 
might  buy  cattle  and  tools  for  their  new  estates. 

His  opponents  were  still  more  infuriated  by  this 
action.  He  had  offered  himself  for  re-election  to  the 
office  of  tribune,  promising  the  people  new  and  im- 


THE   GRACCHI   AND   THEIR   FALL.  169 

portant  reforms.  His  patrician  foes  took  advantage 
of  the  opportunity.  As  he  stood  in  the  Forum,  sur- 
rounded by  his  partisans,  an  uproar  arose,  in  the 
midst  of  which  Gracchus  happened  to  raise  his  hand 
to  his  head.  His  enemies  at  once  cried  out  that  he 
wanted  to  make  himself  king,  and  that  this  was  a 
sign  that  he  sought  a  crown. 

A  fierce  fight  ensued.  The  opposing  senators 
attacked  the  crowd  so  furiously  that  those  around 
Gracchus  fled,  leaving  him  unsupported.  He  has- 
tened for  refuge  towards  the  Temple  of  Jupiter,  but 
the  priests  had  closed  the  doors,  and  in  his  haste  he 
stumbled  over  a  bench.  Before  he  could  rise  one  of 
his  enemies  struck  him  over  the  head  with  a  stool. 
A  second  repeated  the  blow.  Before  the  statues  of 
the  old  kings,  which  graced  the  portals  of  the  temple, 
the  tribune  fell  dead. 

Many  of  his  supporters  were  slain  before  the 
tumult  ceased.  Many  were  forced  over  the  wall  at 
the  edge  of  the  Tarpeian  Rock,  and  were  killed  by 
their  fall.  Three  hundred  in  all  were  slain  in  the 
fray. 

Thus  was  shed  the  first  blood  that  flowed  in  civil 
strife  at  Home.  It  was  a  crimson  prelude  to  the 
streams  of  blood  that  were  to  follow,  in  the  long 
series  of  butcheries  which  were  afterwards  to  disgrace 
the  Roman  name. 

Tiberius  Gracchus  may  well  be  called  the  Great, 
for  the  effect  of  his  life  upon  the  history  of  Rome 
was  stupendous.  He  held  office  for  not  more  than 
seven  months,  yet  in  that  short  time  the  power  of 
the  senate  was  so  shaken  by  him  that  it  never  fully 

H  16 


170  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

recovered  its  strength.  Had  he  been  less  gentle,  or 
more  resolute,  in  disposition  his  work  might  have 
been  much  greater  still.  Fiery  indignation  led  him 
on,  but  soldierly  energy  failed  him  at  the  end. 

Caius  Gracchus  was  in  Spain  at  the  time  of  his 
brother's  murder.  On  his  return  to  Rome  he  lived 
in  quiet  retirement  for  some  years.  The  senate 
thought  he  disapproved  of  his  brother's  laws.  They 
did  not  know  him.  At  length  he  offered  himself  as 
a  candidate  for  the  tribuneship,  and  so  convincing 
was  his  eloquence  that  the  people  supported  him  in 
numbers,  and  he  was  elected  to  the  office. 

He  at  once  made  himself  an  ardent  advocate  of 
his  brother's  reforms,  and  with  such  impassioned 
oratory  that  he  gained  adherents  on  every  side.  He 
made  himself  active  in  all  measures  of  public  prog- 
ress, advocating  the  building  of  roads  and  bridges, 
the  erection  of  mile-stones,  the  giving  the  right  to 
vote  to  Italians  in  general,  and  the  selling  of  grain 
at  low  rates  to  the  deserving  poor.  The  laws  passed 
for  these  purposes  are  known  as  the  Sempronian 
laws,  from  the  name  of  the  family  to  which  the 
Gracchi  belonged. 

By  this  time  the  rich  senators  had  grown  highly 
alarmed.  Here  was  a  new  Gracchus  in  the  field,  as 
eloquent  and  as  eager  for  reform  as  his  brother,  and 
who  was  daily  growing  more  and  more  in  favor  with 
the  people.  Something  must  be  done  at  once,  or  this 
new  demagogue — as  they  called  him — would  do  them 
more  harm  than  that  for  which  they  had  slain  his 
brother. 

They  adopted  the  policy  of  fraud  in  place  of  that 


THE  GRACCHI  AND  THEIR  FALL.       171 

of  violence.  The  people  were  gullible ;  they  might 
be  made  to  believe  that  the  senators  of  Rome  were 
their  best  friends.  A  rich  and  eloquent  politician, 
Drusus  by  name,  proposed  measures  more  democratic 
even  than  those  which  Gracchus  had  advocated.  This 
effort  had  the  effect  that  was  intended.  The  influ- 
ence of  Gracchus  over  the  popular  mind  was  lessened. 
The  people  had  proved  fully  as  gullible  as  the  shrewd 
senators  had  expected. 

Among  other  measures  proposed  by  Gracchus  was 
one  for  planting  a  colony  and  building  a  new  city 
on  the  site  of  Carthage.  The  senate  appeared  to 
approve  this,  and  appointed  him  one  of  the  commis- 
sioners for  laying  out  the  settlement.  He  was  forced 
to  leave  Rome,  and  during  his  absence  his  enemies 
worked  more  diligently  than  ever.  Gracchus  was 
defeated  in  the  election  for  tribune  that  followed. 

And  now  the  plans  of  his  enemies  matured.  It 
was  said  that  the  new  colony  at  Carthage  had  been 
planted  on  the  ground  cursed  by  Scipio.  Wolves 
had  torn  down  the  boundary-posts,  which  signified 
the  wrath  of  the  gods.  The  tribes  were  called  to 
meet  at  the  Capitol,  and  repeal  the  law  for  colonizing 
Carthage. 

A  tumult  arose.  A  man  who  insulted  Gracchus 
was  slain  by  an  unknown  hand.  The  senate  pro- 
claimed Gracchus  and  his  friends  public  enemies,  and 
roused  many  of  the  people  against  him  by  parading 
the  body  of  the  slain  man.  Gracchus  and  his  friends 
took  up  a  position  on  the  Aventine  Hill.  Here  they 
were  assailed  by  a  strong  armed  force. 

There  was  no  resistance.     Gracchus  sought  refuge 


172  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

at  first  in  the  Temple  of  Diana,  and  afterwards  made 
his  way  to  the  Grove  of  the  Furies,  several  of  his 
friends  dying  in  defence  of  his  flight.  A  single  slave 
accompanied  him.  When  the  grove  was  reached  by 
his  pursuers  both  were  found  dead.  The  faithful 
slave  had  pierced  his  master's  heart,  and  then  slain 
himself  by  the  same  sword. 

Slaughter  ruled  in  Rome.  The  Tiber  flowed  thick 
with  the  corpses  of  the  friends  of  Gracchus,  who 
were  slain  by  the  fierce  patricians.  The  houses  of 
the  murdered  reformers  were  plundered  by  the  mob, 
for  whose  good  they  had  lost  their  lives.  For  the 
time  none  dared  speak  the  name  of  Gracchus  except 
in  reprobation.  Yet  he  and  his  brother  had  done 
yeoman  service  for  the  ungrateful  people  of  Rome. 

Cornelia  retired  to  Misenum,  where  she  lived  for 
many  years.  But  she  lived  not  in  grief  for  her  sons, 
but  in  pride  and  triumph.  They  had  died  the  deaths 
of  heroes  and  patriots,  and  she  gloried  in  their  fame, 
declaring  that  they  had  found  worthy  graves  in  the 
temples  of  the  gods. 

So  came  the  people  to  think,  in  after-years,  and 
they  set  up  in  the  Forum  a  bronze  statue  to  the  great 
Roman  matron,  on  which  were  inscribed  only  these 
words :  To  CORNELIA,  THE  MOTHER  OP  THE  GRACCHI. 


JUGURTHA,  THE  PURCHASER  OF 
ROME. 

MASINISSA,  the  valiant  old  king  of  Numidia,  who 
had  ravaged  Carthage  in  its  declining  days,  left 
his  kingdom  to  his  three  sons.  On  the  death  of 
Micipsa,  the  last  remaining  of  these,  in  118  B.C.,  he, 
in  turn,  left  the  kingdom  to  his  two  sons.  They 
were  still  young,  and  Jugurtha,  their  cousin,  was 
appointed  their  guardian  and  the  regent  of  the 
kingdom. 

Shrewd,  bold,  ambitious,  and  unscrupulous,  Jugur- 
tha was  the  most  dangerous  man  in  Numidia  to 
whose  care  the  young  princes  could  have  been  con- 
fided. Scipio  read  his  character  rightly,  and  said  to 
him,  "  Trust  to  your  own  good  qualities,  and  power 
will  come  of  itself.  Seek  it  by  base  arts,  and  you 
will  lose  all." 

Some  of  the  young  nobles  in  Scipio's  camp  gave 
baser  advice.  "  At  Rome,"  they  told  him,  "  all 
things  could  be  had  for  money."  They  advised  him 
to  buy  the  support  of  Eome,  and  seize  the  crown  of 
Numidia. 

Jugurtha  took  this  base  advice,  instead  of  the  wise 
counsel  of  Scipio.  He  was  destined  to  pay  dearly 
for  his  ambition  and  lack  of  faith  and  honor.  One 
16*  173 


174  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

of  the  young  princes  showed  a  high  spirit,  and 
Jugurtha  had  him  assassinated.  The  other  fled  to 
Rome  and  sought  the  support  of  the  senate.  Ju- 
gurtha now,  following  the  suggestions  of  his  false 
friends,  sent  gold  and  promises  to  Rome,  purchased 
the  support  of  venal  senators,  and  had  voted  to  him 
the  strongest  half  of  the  kingdom ;  Adherbal,  the 
young  prince,  being  given  the  weaker  half. 

But  the  young  man  was  not  left  in  peace,  even  in 
this  reduced  inheritance.  Jugurtha  sent  more  pres- 
ents to  Rome,  and,  confident  of  his  strength  there, 
boldly  invaded  the  dominions  of  Adherbal.  A  Ro- 
man commission  threatened  him  with  Rome's  dis- 
pleasure if  he  did  not  keep  within  his  own  domin- 
ions. He  affected  to  submit,  but  as  soon  as  the 
commissioners  turned  their  backs  the  daring  adven- 
turer renewed  his  efforts,  got  possession  of  his  cousin 
through  treachery,  and  at  once  ordered  him  to  be  put 
to  death  with  torture. 

Since  Rome  had  become  great  and  powerful  no 
one  had  dared  so  openly  to  contemn  its  decrees. 
But  Jugurtha  knew  the  Romans  of  that  day,  and 
trusted  to  his  gold.  He  bought  a  majority  in  the 
senate,  defied  the  minority,  and  would  have  gained 
his  aim  but  for  one  honest  man.  This  was  the  tribune 
Memmius,  who,  seeing  that  the  senate  was  hopelessly 
corrupt,  called  the  people  together  in  the  Forum,  told 
them  of  the  crimes  of  Jugurtha,  and  demanded  jus- 
tice and  redress  at  their  hands. 

And  now  a  struggle  arose  like  that  between  the 
Gracchi  and  the  rich  senators.  Jugurtha  sent  more 
gold  to  Rome.  An  army  was  despatched  against 


JUQURTHA,  THE  PURCHASER  OP  ROME.     175 

him,  but  he  purchased  it  also.  He  gave  up  his  ele- 
phants in  pledge  of  good  faith,  and  then  bought 
them  back  at  a  high  price.  The  officers  divided  the 
money,  and  the  army  failed  to  advance. 

Jugurtha  would  have  triumphed  but  for  Memmius, 
who  resolutely  kept  up  his  attacks.  In  the  end  the 
usurper  was  ordered  to  come  to  Kome, — under  a  safe- 
conduct.  He  came,  and  here  by  his  gold  purchased 
one  of  the  tribunes,  who  protected  him  against  the 
wrath  of  Memmius  and  the  people.  But  Memmius 
was  resolute  and  determined.  Another  Numidian 
prince  was  found  and  asked  to  demand  the  crown 
from  the  senate.  Jugurtha  learned  what  was  afoot, 
and  sent  an  agent,  Bomilcar  by  name,  to  assassinate 
the  new  prince.  An  indictment  was  laid  against 
Bomilcar,  but  Jugurtha,  fearing  to  have  his  own 
share  in  the  murder  exposed,  sent  him  off  secretly 
to  Africa. 

This  was  too  much,  even  for  the  purchased  mem- 
bers of  the  senate.  Such  open  disdain  of  the  majesty 
of  Rome  no  man,  however  avaricious,  dared  support. 
Jugurtha  had  a  safe-conduct,  and  could  not  be  seized, 
but  he  was  ordered  to  quit  Eome  immediately.  He 
did  so,  and  as  he  passed  out  of  the  gates  he  looked 
back  and  said,  "A  city  for  sale  if  she  can  find  a  pur- 
chaser." 

The  remainder  of  Jugurtha's  history  is  one  of 
war.  The  time  for  winning  power  by  bribery  was 
past.  The  people  were  so  thoroughly  aroused  and 
incensed  that  none  dared  yield  to  cupidity.  The  in- 
dignation grew.  The  first  army  sent  against  Jugur- 
tha was  baffled  by  the  wily  African,  caught  in  a 


176  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

defile,  and  only  escaped  by  passing  under  the  yoke, 
and  agreeing  to  evacuate  Numidia. 

This  disgrace  stirred  Eome  more  deeply  still.  A 
new  consul  was  elected  and  a  new  army  raised.  A 
commission  was  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  conduct 
of  the  senate,  and  several  of  the  leading  members 
were  found  guilty  of  high  treason  and  put  to  death 
without  mercy.  Eome  had  begun  to  purge  itself. 

The  new  general,  Metellus,  was  not  one  to  be  sent 
under  the  yoke.  He  defeated  Jugurtha  in  the  field 
and  pursued  him  so  unrelentingly  that  soon  the 
African  usurper  was  a  fugitive,  without  an  army,  and 
with  only  some  fortresses  under  his  control. 

Metellus  had  with  him  as  his  principal  officer  a 
man  who  was  to  become  famous  in  Roman  history. 
This  man,  Caius  Marius,  was  then  fifty  years  of  age. 
Yet  he  had  years  enough  before  him  to  play  a 
mighty  part.  He  was  a  man  of  the  people,  rough 
and  uneducated ;  scorned  learning,  but  had  a  vigor- 
ous ambition  and  a  striking  military  genius.  He 
claimed  to  be  a  New  Man,  knew  no  Greek,  and 
boasted  that  he  had  no  images  but  "  prizes  won  by 
valor  and  scars  upon  his  breast." 

This  man  made  himself  the  favorite  of  the  popu- 
lace, was  elected  consul,  and  by  undisguised  trickery 
took  the  conduct  of  the  war  out  of  the  hands  of 
Metellus  just  as  the  latter  was  about  to  succeed. 
With  him  to  Africa  went  another  man  who  was  to 
become  equally  famous,  L.  Cornelius  Sulla,  the 
future  chief  of  Rome.  Sulla  was  not  a  New  Man. 
He  was  an  aristocrat,  knew  Greek  better  than 
Marius  knew  Latin,  was  educated  and  dissipated, 


JUGURTHA,  THE   PURCHASER   OF   ROME.  177 

and  showed  the  marks  of  a  dissolute  life  in  his  face. 
When  he  rode  into  the  camp  of  Marius  at  the  head 
of  the  cavalry  he  had  seen  no  service,  and  the 
rugged  soldier  looked  with  contempt  on  this  effemi- 
nate pleasure-seeker  who  had  been  sent  as  his  lieu- 
tenant. He  soon  learned  his  mistake,  and  before 
the  campaign  ended  Sulla  was  his  most  trusted 
officer  and  chief  adviser. 

In  the  subsequent  conduct  of  the  war  there  is  an 
interesting  story  to  tell.  There  were  two  hill- forts 
in  Numidia  which  still  remained  in  Jugurtha's  con- 
trol. One  of  these  was  taken  easily.  The  other — 
which  contained  all  that  was  left  of  the  usurper's 
treasures — was  a  formidable  place,  which  long  defied 
the  Eoman  engineers.  It  stood  on  a  precipitous 
rock,  with  only  a  single  narrow  ascent;  was  well 
garrisoned  and  supplied  with  arms,  food,  and  water ; 
and  so  long  defied  all  the  efforts  of  Marius  that  he 
almost  despaired  of  its  capture. 

In  this  dilemma  a  happy  chance  came  to  his  aid. 
A  Ligurian  soldier,  a  practised  mountaineer,  being 
in  search  of  water,  saw  a  number  of  snails  crawling 
up  the  rock  in  the  rear  of  the  castle.  These  were  a 
favorite  food  with  him,  and  he  gathered  what  he 
saw,  and  climbed  the  cliff  in  search  of  more. 
Higher  and  higher  he  went,  till  he  had  nearly 
reached  the  summit  of  the  rock.  Here  he  found 
himself  near  a  large  oak,  which  had  rooted  itself  in 
the  rock  crevices,  and  grew  upward  so  as  to  overtop 
the  castle  hill. 

The  Ligurian,  led  by  curiosity,  climbed  the  tree, 
and  gained  a  point  from  which  he  could  see  the 
II. — m 


178  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

castle,  undefended  on  this  side,  and  without  sen- 
tinels. Having  taken  a  close  observation,  he  de- 
scended, carefully  examining  every  point  as  he  went. 
He  now  hastened  to  the  tent  of  Marius,  recounted 
to  him  his  exploit,  and  offered  to  guide  a  party  up 
the  perilous  ascent. 

Marius  was  quick  to  seize  this  hopeful  chance. 
Five  trumpeters  and  four  centurions  were  selected, 
who  were  placed  under  the  leadership  of  the  moun- 
taineer. Laying  aside  all  clothing  and  arms  that 
would  obstruct  them,  they  followed  the  Ligurian  up 
the  rock.  He,  an  alert  and  skilful  climber,  here  and 
there  tied  ropes  to  projecting  points,  here  lent  them 
the  aid  of  his  hand,  here  sent  them  up  ahead  and 
carried  their  arms  after  them.  At  length,  with 
great  toil  and  risk,  they  reached  the  summit,  and 
found  the  castle  at  this  point  undefended  and  un- 
watched,  the  Numidians  being  all  on  the  opposite 
side. 

Marius,  being  apprised  of  their  success,  ordered  a 
vigorous  assault  in  front.  The  garrison  rushed  to 
the  defence  of  their  outer  works.  In  the  heat  of 
the  action  a  sudden  clangor  of  trumpets  was  heard 
in  their  rear.  This  unexpected  sound  spread  instant 
alarm.  The  women  and  children  who  had  come  out 
to  watch  the  contest  fled  in  terror.  The  soldiers 
nearest  the  walls  followed.  At  length  the  whole 
body,  stricken  suddenly  with  panic,  took  to  flight, 
followed  in  hot  pursuit  by  their  foes. 

Over  the  deserted  works  the  Romans  clambered, 
into  the  castle  they  burst,  all  who  opposed  them 
were  cut  down,  and  in  a  short  time  the  place  which 


JUGTJRTHA,  THE   PURCHASER   OF   ROME.  179 

had  so  long  defied  them  was  theirs,  while  the  four 
trumpets  to  which  their  victory  was  due  sounded 
loudly  the  war-peal  of  triumph. 

Jugurtha  was  still  at  large.  He  was  supported  by 
Bocchus,  king  of  Mauritania,  whose  daughter  he  had 
married.  Sulla  was  sent  to  demand  his  surrender. 
Bocchus  refused  at  first,  but  at  length,  through  fear 
of  Eome,  consented,  and  the  bold  usurper  was  be- 
trayed into  Sulla's  hands. 

The  end  of  Jugurtha  was  one  in  accordance  with 
the  brutal  cruelty  of  Eome,  yet  it  was  one  which 
he  richly  deserved.  It  was  in  the  month  of  Janu- 
ary, 104  B.C.,  three  years  after  his  capture,  that 
Marius  entered  Eome  in  triumphal  procession,  dis- 
playing to  the  people  the  spoils  of  his  victories, 
while  before  his  car  walked  his  captive  in  chains. 

The  African  seemed  sunk  in  stupor  as  he  walked. 
He  was  roused  by  the  brutal  mob,  who  tore  off  his 
clothes  and  plucked  the  gold  rings  from  his  ears. 
Then  he  was  thrust  into  the  dungeon  at  the  foot  of 
the  Capitoline  Hill.  "  Hercules,  what  a  cold  bath 
this  is!"  he  exclaimed.  There  he  who  had  defied 
Eome  and  lorded  it  over  Africa  starved  to  death. 
A  prince  of  the  line  of  Masinissa  succeeded  him  on 
the  throne. 


THE  EXILE  AND  REVENGE   OF 
MARIUS. 

MARITJS  and  Sulla,  the  heroes  of  the  Jugurthine 
War,  in  later  years  led  in  greater  wars,  in  which 
they  gained  much  fame.  They  ended  their  careers 
in  frightful  massacres,  in  which  they  gained  great 
infamy.  Rome,  which  had  made  the  world  its 
slaughter-house,  was  itself  turned  into  a  slaughter- 
house by  these  cruel  and  revengeful  rivals. 

There  was  rarel}"  any  lack  of  work  for  the  swords 
of  Rome.  While  Marius  was  absent  in  Africa  a 
frightful  peril  threatened  the  Roman* state.  A  vast 
horde  of  barbarians  was  sweeping  downward  from 
the  north.  The  Germans  of  Central  Europe  had 
ravaged  Switzerland  and  invaded  Gaul.  Every 
army  sent  against  them  had  been  defeated  with 
great  slaughter.  Italy  was  in  immediate  danger 
of  invasion,  Rome  in  imminent  peril.  Marius  was 
sadly  needed,  and  on  his  return  from  Africa  was 
hailed  as  the  only  man  who  could  save  the  state. 

Instantly  he  gathered  an  army  and  set  out  for 
Gaul,  Sulla  going  with  him  as  a  subordinate  officer. 
Two  years  were  spent  in  marches  and  counter- 
marches, and  then  (B.C.  102)  he  met  the  enemy  and 
defeated  them  with  immense  slaughter.  Reserving 
the  richest  of  the  spoils,  he  devoted  the  remainder 
180 


THE   EXILE   AND   REVENGE   OF   MARIU8.  181 

to  the  gods,  and,  as  he  stood  in  a  purple  robe,  torch 
in  hand,  about  to  apply  the  flame  to  the  costly 
funeral  pile,  horsemen  dashed  at  full  speed  through 
the  open  lines  of  the  troops,  and  announced  that  for 
a  fifth  time  he  had  been  elected  consul  of  Eome. 

In  this  war  Sulla  also  showed  valor  and  won  fame. 
But  he  had  grown  jealous  of  the  glory  of  Marius, 
and  left  his  army  to  join  that  of  the  consul  Catulus, 
who  was  being  driven  backward  by  another  great 
horde  of  barbarians.  Marius,  having  beaten  his  own 
foes,  hastened  to  the  relief  of  his  associate ;  the  flight 
was  stopped,  and  a  battle  ensued  in  which  the  in- 
vading army  was  swept  from  the  face  of  the  earth, 
and  Home  freed  for  centuries  from  danger  of  bar- 
barian invasion. 

Sulla  and  Catulus  had  their  share  in  this  victory, 
but  the  people  gave  Marius  the  whole  honor,  called 
him  the  third  founder  of  their  city  (as  Camillus  had 
been  the  second),  and  gathered  in  rejoicing  multi- 
tudes to  witness  his  triumph. 

While  this  war  was  going  on  there  was  dreadful 
work  at  home.  Tie  slaves  had,  for  the  second  time, 
broken  into  insurrection.  This  servile  war  was 
mainly  in  Sicily,  where  thousands  of  slaves  were 
slain.  Of  the  captives,  many  were  taken  to  Eome 
to  fight  with  wild  beasts  in  the  arena,  but  they  dis- 
appointed the  eager  spectators  by  killing  each  other. 
This  outbreak  only  made  slavery  at  Eome  harder 
and  harsher  than  before. 

Years  passed  on,  and  then  another  war  broke  out. 
The  Italian  allies,  who  had  helped  to  make  Eome 
great,  claimed  rights  of  citizenship  and  suffrage. 

16 


182  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

These  were  denied,  and  what  is  known  as  the  Social 
War  began.  Sulla  and  Marius  took  part  in  this  con- 
flict, which  ended  in  favor  of  Eome,  though  the 
franchise  fought  for  was  in  large  measure  gained. 
It  was  of  little  value,  however,  since  all  who  held  it 
were  obliged  to  go  to  the  city  of  Eome  to  vote. 

During  these  various  conflicts  the  rivalry  between 
Marius  and  Sulla  grew  steadily  more  declared.  The 
old  plebeian,  now  seventy  years  of  age,  was  jealous 
of  the  honors  which  his  aristocratic  rival  had  gained 
in  the  Social  War,  and  a  spirit  of  bitter  hatred, 
which  was  to  bear  dire  results,  arose  in  his  heart. 

Events  to  come  were  to  blow  this  spark  of  hatred 
into  a  glowing  flame.  A  new  war  threatened  Kome. 
Mithridates  the  Great,  king  of  Pontus,  in  Asia 
Minor,  was  pursuing  a  career  of  conquest,  and  the 
Roman  provinces  in  Asia  were  in  danger.  War  was 
determined  on,  and  Sulla,  who  had  already  held  suc- 
cessful command  in  the  East,  claimed  the  command 
of  the  new  army.  Marius,  old  as  he  was,  wanted  it, 
too,  and  by  his  influence  with  the  new  citizens  of 
Rome  succeeded  in  defeating  Sulla  and  gaining  the 
appointment  of  general  in  the  war  against  Pontus. 

This  vote  of  the  tribes  precipitated  a  contest.  The 
Social  War  was  not  yet  fully  ended,  and  Sulla  has- 
tened to  the  camp  where  his  soldiers  were  besieging 
a  Samnite  town.  It  was  his  purpose  to  set  sail  for 
the  East  before  he  could  be  superseded.  He  was  too 
late.  Officials  from  Rome  reached  the  camp  almost 
as  soon  as  he,  bearing  a  commission  from  Marius  to 
assume  the  command.  It  was  a  critical  moment. 
Sulla  must  either  yield  or  inaugurate  a  civil  war. 


THE   EXILE   AND   REVENGE   OP   MARIUS.  183 

He  chose  the  latter.  Calling  the  soldiers  together, 
he  told  them  that  he  had  been  insulted  and  injured, 
and  that,  unless  they  supported  him,  they  would  be 
left  at  home,  and  a  new  army  raised  by  Marius 
would  obtain  the  spoils  of  the  Mithridatic  war. 
Stirred  by  this  appeal  to  their  avarice,  the  legions 
stoned  to  death  the  officers  sent  by  Marius,  and 
loudly  demanded  to  be  led  to  Borne. 

Their  coming  took  Marius  by  surprise,  and  threw 
the  city  into  consternation.  No  one  had  dreamed 
of  such  daring  and  audacity.  To  lead  a  Roman 
army  against  Eome  was  unprecedented.  The  sen- 
ate sent  an  embassy  asking  Sulla  to  halt  till  the 
Fathers  could  come  to  some  decision.  He  promised 
to  do  so,  but  as  soon  as  the  envoys  had  gone  he  sent 
a  force  that  seized  the  Colline  Gate  and  entered  the 
city  streets.  Here  their  progress  was  stopped  by 
the  people,  who  hurled  tiles  and  stones  upon  their 
heads  from  the  house-tops. 

The  whole  army  soon  followed,  and  Sulla  entered 
the  city  with  two  legions  at  his  back.  The  people 
again  opposed  their  march,  but  Sulla  seized  a 
torch  and  threatened  to  burn  the  city  if  any  hos- 
tility were  shown.  This  ended  all  opposition,  except 
that  made  by  Marius,  who  retreated  to  the  Capi- 
tol, where  he  proclaimed  liberty  to  all  slaves  who 
would  join  his  banner.  This  did  him  much  more 
harm  than  good ;  his  adherents  dispersed ;  he  and 
his  chief  supporters  were  forced  to  seek  safety  in 
flight. 

And  now  we]  have  a  story  of  striking  interest  to 
tell  It  would  need  the  powers  of  invention  of  a 


184  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

romancer  to  devise  a  series  of  adventures  as  remark- 
able as  those  which  befell  old  Marius  in  his  flight. 
It  is  one  of  the  strangest  stories  in  all  the  annals  of 
history,  a  marked  illustration  of  the  saying  that  fact 
is  often  stranger  than  fiction. 

Marius  fled  to  Ostia,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Tiber, 
in  company  with  Granius,  his  son-in-law,  and  five 
slaves.  He  proposed  to  take  ship  there  for  Africa, 
where  his  influence  was  great.  His  son  followed 
him  by  a  different  route,  and  arrived  at  Ostia  to 
find  that  his  father  had  put  to  sea.  There  was  an- 
other vessel  about  to  sail,  which  the  son  took,  and 
in  which  he  succeeded  in  reaching  Africa. 

The  older  fugitive  had  no  such  good  fortune.  The 
elements  pronounced  against  him,  and  a  storm  drove 
the  vessel  ashore  near  Circeii.  Here  the  party  wan- 
dered in  distress  along  the  desolate  coast,  in  immi- 
nent danger  of  capture,  for  emissaries  of  Sulla  were 
scouring  the  shores  of  Italy  in  his  pursuit.  For- 
tunately for  the  old  general,  he  was  recognized  by 
some  herdsmen,  who  warned  him  that  a  troop  of 
cavalry  was  approaching.  Not  knowing  who  they 
were,  and  fearing  their  purpose,  the  fugitives  hastily 
left  the  road  and  sought  shelter  in  the  forest  that 
there  came  down  near  to  the  coast. 

Here  the  night  was  miserably  passed,  the  fugitives 
suffering  for  want  of  food  and  shelter.  When  the 
dawn  of  the  next  day  broke,  their  forlorn  walk  was 
resumed,  there  being  no  enemy  in  sight.  By  this 
time  the  whole  party,  with  the  exception  of  Marius, 
was  greatly  depressed.  He  alone  kept  up  his  spirits, 
telling  his  followers  that  he  had  been  six  times 


THE   EXILE   AJ*D   REVENGE   OF   MARIUS.  185 

consul  of  Rome,  and  that  a  seventh  consulship 
would  yet  be  his. 

There  seemed  little  hope  of  such  a  turn  of  fortune 
as  the  hungry  fugitives  dragged  wearily  onward. 
For  two  days  they  kept  on,  making  about  forty 
miles  of  distance.  At  the  end  of  that  time  peril  of 
capture  came  frightfully  near.  A  body  of  horse- 
men was  visible  at  a  distance,  coming  rapidly  on. 
No  friendly  forest  here  offered  shelter.  The  only 
hope  of  escape  lay  in  two  merchant  vessels,  which 
were  moving  slowly  close  in  shore. 

Calling  loudly  for  aid,  Marius  and  those  with  him 
plunged  into  the  water  and  swam  for  these  vessels. 
Granius  reached  one  of  them.  Harms  was  so  ex- 
hausted that  he  could  not  swim,  and  was  supported 
with  difficulty  above  the  water  by  two  slaves  till 
the  seamen  of  the  other  vessel  drew  him  on  board. 

He  had  barely  reached  the  deck  when  the  troop 
of  horsemen  rode  to  the  water's  edge,  and  their 
leader  called  to  the  captain  of  the  vessel,  telling  him 
that  it  was  the  proscribed  Marius  he  had  rescued, 
and  bidding  him  at  once  to  deliver  him  up. 

What  to  do  the  captain  did  not  know.  The  officer 
on  shore  threatened  him  with  the  vengeance  of 
Sulla  if  he  failed  to  yield  the  fugitive.  Marius,  with 
tears  in  his  eyes,  earnestly  begged  for  protection 
from  the  captain  and  crew.  The  captain  wavered 
in  purpose,  but  finally  yielded  to  Marius  and  sailed 
on.  But  he  did  so  in  doubt  and  fear,  and  on  reach- 
ing the  mouth  of  the  river  Liris  he  persuaded  Marius 
to  go  ashore,  saying  that  the  vessel  must  lie  to  till 
the  land-wind  rose.  The  instant  the  boat  returned 
16* 


186  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  faithless  captain  sailed  away,  leaving  the  aged 
fugitive  absolutely  alone  on  the  beach. 

Walking  wearily  to  the  sorry  hut  of  an  old 
peasant,  which  stood  near,  Marius  told  him  who  he 
was,  and  begged  for  shelter.  The  old  man  hid  him 
in  a  hole  near  the  river,  and  covered  him  with  reeds. 
While  he  lay  there  the  horsemen,  who  had  followed 
the  vessel  along  the  shore,  came  up,  and  asked  the 
tenant  of  the  hut  where  Marius  was. 

The  shivering  fugitive,  in  fear  of  being  betrayed, 
rose  hastily  from  his  hiding-place  and  dashed  into 
the  stream.  Some  of  the  horsemen  saw  him,  he  was 
pursued,  and,  covered  with  mud  and  nearly  naked, 
the  old  conqueror  was  dragged  from  the  river, 
placed  on  a  horse,  and  carried  as  a  captive  to  the 
neighboring  town  of  Miturnae.  Here  he  was  con- 
fined in  the  house  of  a  man  named  Famia  till  his 
fate  could  be  determined. 

A  circular  letter  had  been  received  by  the  magis- 
trates from  the  consuls  at  Eome,  ordering  them  to 
put  Marius  to  death  if  he  should  fall  into  their 
hands.  This  was  more  than  they  cared  to  do  on 
their  own  responsibility,  and  they  called  a  meeting 
of  the  town  council  to  decide  the  momentous  ques- 
tion. The  council  decided  that  Marius  should  die, 
and  sent  a  Gaulish  slave  to  put  him  to  death. 

It  was  dark  when  the  executioner  entered  the 
house  of  Famia.  The  slave,  little  relishing  the  task 
committed  to  his  hands,  entered  the  room  where 
Marius  lay.  All  the  trembling  wretch  could  see  in 
the  darkness  were  the  glaring  eyes  of  the  old  man 
fixed  fiercely  on  him,  while  a  deep  voice  came  from 


THE   EXILE   AND   REVENGE   OF   MARIUS.  187 

the  couch,  "  Fellow,  darest  thou  slay  Caius  Ma- 
rius?" 

Throwing  down  his  sword,  the  Gaul  fled  in  terror 
from  those  accusing  eyes,  crying  out,  loudly,  "  I  can- 
not slay  Caius  Marius !" 

The  magistrates  made  no  further  effort  to  put  their 
prisoner  to  death.  They  managed  that  he  should 
escape,  and  he  made  his  way  to  the  island  of  Ischia, 
which  Granius  had  already  reached.  Here  a  friendly 
ship  took  them  on  board,  and  they  sailed  for  Africa. 

But  the  perils  of  the  fugitive  were  not  yet  at  an 
end.  The  ship  was  forced  to  stop  at  Erycina,  in 
Sicily,  for  water.  Here  a  Roman  official  recognized 
Marius,  fell  upon  the  party  with  a  company  of  sol- 
diers, and  slew  sixteen  of  them.  Marius  was  nearly 
taken,  but  managed  to  escape,  the  vessel  hastily 
setting  sail.  He  now  reached  Africa  without  fur- 
ther  adventure. 

His  son  and  other  friends  had  arrived  earlier,  and, 
encouraging  news  being  told  him,  he  landed  near 
the  site  of  ancient  Carthage.  The  praetor,  learning 
of  his  presence,  and  advised  of  the  revolution  at 
Rome,  sent  him  word  to  quit  the  province  without 
delay.  As  the  messenger  spoke  Marius  looked  at 
him  with  silent  indignation. 

"  What  answer  shall  I  take  back  to  the  prater  ?" 
asked  the  man. 

"  Tell  him,"  said  the  old  general,  with  impressive 
dignity,  "that  you  have  seen  Caius  Marius  sitting 
among  the  ruins  of  Carthage." 

Meanwhile  his  son  had  reached  Numidia,  where 
he  was  outwardly  well  received  by  the  king,  yet 


188  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

held  in  captivity.  He  was  at  length  enabled  to  es- 
cape by  the  aid  of  the  king's  daughter,  and  joined 
his  father.  Marius  was  not  further  molested. 

Yet  it  would  have  been  well  for  the  fame  of  Caius 
Marius  had  his  life  ended  here.  He  would  have  es- 
caped the  infamy  of  his  later  years,  and  the  flood 
of  blood  and  vengeance  in  which  his  career  reached 
its  end.  He  had  friends  still  in  Rome.  Sulla  had 
made  many  foes  by  his  capture  of  the  city.  Among 
the  new  consuls  elected  was  Cornelius  Cinna,  who 
quickly  made  trouble  for  the  ruler  of  Eome.  Sulla, 
finding  his  power  abating,  and  fearing  assassination 
by  friends  of  Marius,  concluded  to  let  the  senate  fight 
its  own  battles,  and  shipped  his  troops  for  Greece, 
leaving  Rome  to  its  own  devices,  while  he  occupied 
himself  with  fighting  its  enemy  in  the  East. 

No  sooner  had  he  gone  than  civil  war  began. 
Fighting  took  place  in  the  streets  of  Rome.  Cinna 
moved  in  the  senate  that  Marius  should  be  restored 
to  his  rights.  Failing  in  this,  he  gathered  an  army 
and  threatened  his  enemies  in  Rome. 

News  of  all  this  soon  reached  old  Marius  in  Africa. 
At  the  head  of  a  thousand  desperate  men  he  took 
ship  and  landed  in  Etruria.  Here  he  proclaimed 
liberty  to  all  slaves  who  would  join  him,  and  soon 
had  a  large  force.  He  also  gained  a  small  fleet.  He 
and  Cinna  now  joined  forces  and  marched  on  Rome. 

The  senate,  which  stood  for  Sulla,  had  meanwhile 
been  gathering  an  army  for  the  defence  of  the  city. 
But  few  of  those  ordered  from  afar  reached  the 
gates,  and  of  the  principal  force  the  greater  part 
deserted  to  Marius.  The  city  was  soon  invested  o»« 


THE   EXILE   AND   REVENGE    OF    MARIU8.  189 

all  sides.  The  ships  of  Marius  captured  the  corn- 
vessels  from  Sicily  and  Africa.  A  plague  broke  out 
in  the  city,  which  decimated  the  army  of  the  senate, 
In  the  end  beleaguered  Kome  was  forced  to  open  its 
gates  to  a  new  conqueror. 

All  the  senate  asked  for  was  that  Cinna  would  not 
permit  a  general  massacre.  This  he  promised.  But 
behind  his  chair,  in  which  he  sat  in  state  as  consul, 
stood  old  Marius,  whose  face  threatened  disaster. 
He  was  dressed  in  mean  attire ;  his  hair  and  beard 
hung  down  rough  and  long,  for  neither  had  been  cut 
since  the  day  he  fled  from  Eome ;  on  his  brow  was 
a  sullen  frown  that  boded  only  evil  to  his  foes. 

Evil  it  was,  evil  without  stint.  Rome  was  treated 
as  a  conquered  city.  The  slaves  and  desperadoes 
who  followed  Marius  were  let  loose  to  plunder  at 
their  will.  Octavius,  the  consul  who  had  supported 
the  senate,  was  slain  in  his  consular  chair.  A  series 
of  horrible  butcheries  followed.  Marius  was  bent 
on  dire  vengeance,  and  his  enemies  fell  in  multi- 
tudes. Followed  by  a  band  of  ruffians  known  as 
the  Bardiaei,  the  remorseless  old  man  roamed  in 
search  of  victims  through  the  city  streets,  and  any 
man  of  rank  whom  he  passed  without  a  salute  was 
at  once  struck  dead. 

The  senators  who  had  opposed  his  recall  from 
exile  fell  first.  Others  followed  in  multitudes. 
Those  who  had  private  wrongs  to  revenge  followed 
the  example  of  their  chief.  The  slaves  of  the  army 
killed  at  will  all  whom  they  wished  to  plunder.  So 
great  became  the  licentious  outrages  of  these  slaves 
that  in  the  end  Cinna,  who  had  taken  no  part  in  the 


190  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

massacres,  fell  upon  them  with  a  body  of  troops  and 
slew  several  thousands.  This  reprisal  in  some  meas- 
ure restored  order  in  Rome. 

Sulla,  meanwhile,  was  winning  victories  in  the 
East,  and  the  news  of  them  somewhat  disturbed  the 
ruthless  conquerors.  But  for  the  present  they  were 
absolute,  and  the  saturnalia  of  blood  went  on.  It 
ended  at  length  in  the  death  of  Marius. 

Since  his  return  he  had  given  himself  to  wine  and 
riotous  living.  This,  after  the  privations  and  hard- 
ships he  had  recently  suffered,  sapped  his  iron  conr 
stitution.  He  was  elected  to  the  seventh  consulship, 
which  he  had  predicted  while  wandering  as  a  fugi- 
tive on  the  south  Italian  shores.  But  he  fell  now 
into  an  inflammatory  fever,  and  in  two  weeks  after 
his  election  he  ceased  to  breathe.  Great  and  suc- 
cessful soldier  as  he  had  been,  his  late  conduct  had 
won  him  wide-spread  detestation,  and  he  died  hated 
by  his  enemies  and  feared  even  by  his  friends. 


THE  PROSCRIPTION  OF  SULLA. 

WHILE  Marius  and  his  friends  were  ruling  and 
murdering  in  Rome,  Sulla,  their  bitter  enemy,  was 
commanding  and  conquering  in  the  East,  biding  his 
time  for  revenge.  He  drove  the  Asiatic  foe  out  of 
Greece,  taking  and  pillaging  Athens  as  an  episode. 
He  carried  the  war  into  Asia,  forced  Mithridates  to 
eue  for  peace,  and  exacted  enormous  sums  (more 
than  one  hundred  million  dollars  in  our  money)  from 
the  rich  cities  of  the  East.  Then,  after  giving  his 
soldiers  a  winter's  rest  in  Asia,  he  turned  his  face 
towards  Rome,  writing  to  the  senate  that  he  was 
coming,  and  that  he  intended  to  take  revenge  on  his 
enemies. 

It  was  now  the  year  83  B.C.  Three  years  had 
passed  since  the  death  of  Marius.  During  the  inter- 
val the  party  of  the  plebeians  had  been  at  the  head 
of  affairs.  Now  Sulla,  the  aristocrat,  was  coming  to 
call  them  to  a  stern  account,  and  they  trembled  in 
anticipation.  They  remembered  vividly  the  Marian 
carnival  of  blood.  What  retribution  would  his 
merciless  rival  exact  ? 

Cinna,  who  had  most  to  fear,  proposed  to  meet  the 
conqueror  in  the  field.  But  his  soldiers  were  not  in 
the  mood  to  fight,  and  settled  the  question  by  murder- 

191 


192  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ing  their  commander.  When  spring  was  well  ad- 
vanced, Sulla  left  Asia,  and  in  sixteen  hundred  ships 
transported  his  men  to  Italy,  landing  at  the  port  of 
Brundusium. 

On  the  6th  of  July,  shortly  after  his  landing,  an 
event  occurred  that  threw  all  Rome  into  consterna- 
tion. The  venerable  buildings  of  the  Capitol  took 
fire  and  were  burned  to  the  ground,  the  cherished 
Sibylline  books  perishing  in  the  flames.  Such  a  dis- 
aster seemed  to  many  Romans  a  fatal  prognostic.  The 
gods  were  surely  against  them,  and  all  things  were 
at  risk. 

Onward  marched  Sulla,  opposed  by  a  much  greater 
army  collected  by  his  opponents.  But  he  led  the 
veterans  of  the  Mithridatic  War,  and  in  the  ranks 
of  his  opponents  no  man  of  equal  ability  appeared. 
Battle  after  battle  was  fought,  Sulla  steadily  advan- 
cing. At  length  an  army  of  Samnites,  raised  to 
defend  the  Marian  cause,  marched  on  Rome.  Caius 
Pontius,  their  commander,  was  bent  on  terribly 
avenging  the  sufferings  of  his  people  on  that  great 
city. 

"  Rome's  last  day,"  he  said  to  his  soldiers,  "  is  come. 
The  city  must  be  annihilated.  The  wolves  that  have 
so  long  preyed  upon  Italy  will  never  cease  from 
troubling  till  their  lair  is  utterly  destroyed." 

Rome  was  in  despair,  for  all  seemed  at  an  end. 
The  Samnites  had  not  forgotten  a  former  Pontius, 
who  had  sent  a  Roman  army  under  the  Caudine 
Forks,  and  had  been  cruelly  murdered  in  the  Capitol. 
They  thundered  on  the  Colline  Gate.  But  at  that 
critical  moment  a  large  body  of  cavalry  appeared 


THE   PROSCRIPTION   OP   SULLA.  193 

and  charged  the  foe.  It  was  the  vanguard  of  Sulla's 
army,  marching  in  haste  to  the  relief  of  Eome. 

A  fierce  battle  ensued.  Sulla  fought  gallantly. 
He  rode  a  white  horse,  and  was  the  mark  of  every 
javelin.  But  despite  his  efforts  his  men  were  forced 
back  against  the  wall,  and  when  night  came  to  their 
relief  it  looked  as  if  nothing  remained  for  them  but 
to  sell  their  lives  as  dearly  as  possible  the  next 
morning. 

But  during  the  night  Sulla  received  favorable  news. 
Crassus,  who  commanded  his  right  wing,  had  com- 
pletely defeated  a  detachment  of  the  Marian  army. 
With  quick  decision,  Sulla  marched  during  the  night 
round  the  enemy's  camp,  joined  Crassus,  and  at  day- 
break attacked  the  foe. 

The  battle  that  ensued  was  a  terrible  one.  Fifty 
thousand  men  fell  on  each  side.  Pontius  and  other 
Marian  leaders  were  slain.  In  the  end  Sulla  tri- 
umphed, taking  eight  thousand  prisoners,  of  whom 
six  thousand  were  Samnites.  The  latter  were,  by 
order  of  the  victor,  ruthlessly  butchered  in  cold 
blood. 

This  was  but  the  prelude  to  an  equally  ruthless  but 
more  protracted  butchery.  Sulla  was  at  last  lord  of 
Rome,  as  absolute  in  power  as  any  emperor  of  later 
days.  In  fact,  he  had  himself  appointed  dictator,  an 
office  which  had  vanished  more  than  a  century 
before,  and  which  raised  him  above  the  law.  He 
announced  that  he  would  give  a  better  government 
to  Home,  but  to  do  so  he  must  first  rid  that  city  of 
its  enemies. 

Marius,  whom  Sulla  hated  with  intense  bitterness, 
II.— I  n  17 


194  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

had  escaped  him  by  death.  By  his  orders  the  bones 
of  the  old  general  were  torn  from  their  tomb  near 
the  Anio  and  flung  into  that  stream.  The  son  of 
Marius  had  slain  himself  to  prevent  being  taken. 
His  head  was  brought  to  Sulla  at  Rome,  who  gazed 
on  the  youthful  face  with  grim  satisfaction,  saying, 
"Those  who  take  the  helm  must  first  serve  at  the 
oar."  As  for  himself,  his  fortune  was  now  accom- 
plished, he  said,  and  henceforth  he  should  be  known 
as  Felix. 

The  cruel  work  which  Sulla  had  promised  im- 
mediately began.  Adherents  of  the  popular  party 
were  slaughtered  daily  and  hourly  at  Eome.  Some 
who  had  taken  no  part  in  the  late  war  were  slain. 
No  man  knew  if  he  was  safe.  Some  of  the  sena- 
tors asked  that  the  names  of  the  guilty  should  be 
made  known,  that  the  innocent  might  be  relieved 
from  uncertainty.  The  proposition  hit  with  Sulla's 
humor.  He  ordered  that  a  list  of  those  doomed  to 
death  should  be  made  out  and  published.  This  was 
called  a  Proscription. 

But  the  uncertainty  continued  as  great  as  ever. 
The  list  contained  but  eighty  names.  It  was  quickly 
followed  by  another  containing  one  hundred  and 
twenty.  Day  after  day  new  lists  of  the  doomed  were 
issued.  To  make  death  sure,  a  reward  of  two  talents 
was  promised  any  one  who  should  kill  a  proscribed 
man, — even  if  the  killer  were  his  son  or  his  slave. 
Those  who  in  any  way  aided  the  proscribed  became 
themselves  doomed  to  death. 

Men  who  envied  others  their  property  managed 
to  have  their  names  put  on  the  list.  A  partisan  of 


THE   PROSCRIPTION   OP   SULLA.  195 

Sulla  was  exulting  over  the  doomed,  when  his  eye  fell 
on  his  own  name  in  the  list.  He  hastily  fled,  and 
the  bystanders,  judging  the  cause,  followed  and  cut 
him  down.  Catiline,  who  afterwards  became  notori- 
ous in  Roman  history,  murdered  his  own  brother, 
and  to  legalize  the  murder  had  the  name  of  his 
victim  placed  on  the  list. 

How  many  were  murdered  we  do  not  know. 
Probably  little  less  than  three  thousand  in  Rome. 
The  stream  of  murder  flowed  to  other  cities.  Several 
of  these  defied  the  conqueror,  but  were  taken  one  by 
one  and  their  defenders  slain.  To  all  cities  which 
had  taken  part  with  the  Marians  the  proscription 
made  its  way.  Of  the  total  number  slain  during  this 
reign  of  terror  no  record  exists,  but  the  deliberate 
butchery  of  Sulla  went  far  beyond  the  ferocious  but 
temporary  slaughter  of  Marius. 

Murder  was  followed  by  confiscation.  Sulla 
ordered  that  the  property  of  the  slain  should  be 
sold  at  auction  and  the  proceeds  put  in  the  treasury. 
But  the  favorites  of  the  dictator  were  the  chief  bid- 
ders, the  property  was  sold  at  a  tithe  of  its  value, 
and  the  unworthy  and  dissolute  obtained  the  lion's 
share  of  the  spoil. 

During  this  period  of  murder  and  confiscation  we 
first  hear  the  names  of  a  number  of  afterwards 
famous  Romans.  Catiline  we  have  named.  Pompey 
took  part  in  the  war  on  Sulla's  side,  was  victorious 
in  Sicily  and  Africa,  and  on  his  return  was  hailed 
by  his  chief  with  the  title  of  Pompey  the  Great. 
Another  stjll  more  famous  personage  was  Julius 
Caesar.  Sulla  had  ordered  that  all  persons  connected 


196  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

by  marriage  with  the  Marian  party  should  divorce 
their  wives.  Pompey  obeyed.  Csesar,  who  was  a 
nephew  of  Marius  and  had  married  the  daughter  of 
Cinna,  boldly  refused.  He  was  then  a  youth  of  nine- 
teen. His  boldness  would  have  brought  him  death 
had  not  powerful  friends  asked  for  his  life. 

"  You  know  not  what  you  ask,"  said  Sulla ;  "  that 
profligate  boy  will  be  more  dangerous  than  many 
Mariuses." 

Caesar,  not  trusting  Sulla's  doubtful  humor,  es- 
caped from  Rome,  and  hid  in  the  depths  of  the 
Sabine  mountains,  awaiting  a  time  when  the  streets 
of  the  capital  city  would  be  safer  for  those  who 
dared  speak  their  minds. 

Another  young  man  of  rising  fame  showed  little 
less  boldness.  This  was  Cicero,  who  had  just  re- 
turned to  Rome  from  his  studies  in  Greece.  He 
ventured  to  defend  Roscius  of  Ameria  against  an 
accusation  of  murder  made  by  Chrysogonus,  a  prime 
favorite  of  Sulla.  Cicero  lashed  the  favorite  vigor- 
ously, and  won  a  verdict  for  his  client.  But  he  found 
it  advisable  to  leave  Rome  immediately  and  resume 
his  studies  at  Rhodes. 

Sulla  ended  his  work  by  organizing  a  new  senate 
and  making  a  new  code  of  laws.  Three  hundred 
new  members  were  added  to  the  senate,  and  the  laws 
of  Rome  were  brought  largely  back  to  the  state  in 
which  they  had  been  before  the  Gracchi. 

This  done,  to  the  utter  surprise  of  the  people  he 
laid  down  his  power  and  retired  from  Rome,  within 
whose  streets  he  never  again  set  foot.  He  had  no 
occasion  for  fear.  He  had  scattered  his  veterans 


THE   PROSCRIPTION   OF   SULLA.  197 

throughout  Italy  on  confiscated  estates,  and  knew 
that  he  could  trust  to  their  support.  Before  his  de- 
parture he  gave  a  feast  of  costly  meats  and  rich 
wines  to  the  Roman  commons,  in  such  profusion  that 
vast  quantities  that  could  not  be  eaten  were  cast 
into  the  Tiber.  Then  he  dismissed  his  armed  at- 
tendants, and  walked  on  foot  to  his  house,  through 
a  multitude  of  whom  many  had  ample  reason  to 
strike  him  down. 

He  now  retired  to  his  villa  near  Puteoli,  on  the 
Bay  of  Naples,  with  the  purpose  of  enjoying  that 
life  of  voluptuous  ease  which  he  craved  more  than 
power  and  distinction.  Here  he  spent  the  brief 
remainder  of  his  life  in  nocturnal  orgies  and  literary 
converse,  completing  his  "Memoirs,"  in  which  he 
told,  in  exaggerated  phrase,  the  story  of  his  life  and 
exploits. 

He  lived  but  about  a  year.  His  excesses  brought 
on  a  complication  of  disorders,  which  ended,  we  are 
told,  in  a  loathsome  disease.  The  senate  voted  him 
a  gorgeous  funeral,  after  which  his  body  was  burned 
on  the  Campus  Martius,  that  no  future  tyrant  could 
treat  his  remains  as  he  had  done  those  of  his  great 
rival  Marius. 


17* 


THE  REVOLT  OF  THE   GLAD  I  A- 
TORS. 

AT  the  beginning  of  the  first  Punic  War,  or  war 
with  Carthage,  a  new  form  of  entertainment  was 
introduced  into  Eome.  This  was  the  gladiatorial 
show,  the  fights  of  armed  men  in  the  arena,  the 
first  of  which  was  given  in  the  year  264  B.C.,  at  the 
funeral  of  D.  Junius  Brutus.  These  exhibitions 
were  long  confined  to  funeral  occasions,  money 
being  frequently  left  for  this  purpose  in  wills,  but 
they  gradually  extended  to  other  occasions,  and 
finally  became  the  choice  amusement  of  the  brutal 
Roman  mob.  The  gladiators  were  divided  into  sev- 
eral classes,  in  accordance  with  their  particular 
weapons  and  modes  of  fighting,  and  great  pains 
were  taken  to  instruct  them  in  the  use  of  their 
special  arms.  But  in  the  period  that  followed  the 
death  of  Sulla  Rome  was  to  have  a  gladiatorial  ex- 
hibition of  a  different  sort. 

In  the  city  of  Capua  was  a  school  of  gladiators, 
kept  by  a  man  named  Lentulus.  It  was  his  practice 
to  hire  out  his  trained  pupils  to  nobles  for  battles  in 
the  arena  during  public  festivals.  His  school  was  a 
large  one,  and  included  in  its  numbers  a  Thracian 
named  Spartacus,  who  had  been  taken  prisoner  while 
leading  his  countrymen  against  the  Romans,  and  was 
198 


THE  REVOLT  OP  THE  GLADIATORS.       199 

to  be  punished  for  his  presumption  by  making  sport 
for  his  conquerors. 

But  Spartacus  had  other  and  nobler  aims.  He 
formed  a  plot  of  flight  to  freedom  in  which  two 
hundred  of  his  fellows  joined,  though  only  seventy- 
eight  succeeded  in  making  their  escape.  These  men, 
armed  merely  with  the  knives  and  spits  which  they 
had  seized  as  they  fled,  made  their  way  to  the  neigh- 
boring mountains,  and  sought  a  refuge  in  the  crater 
of  Mount  Vesuvius.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that 
this  mountain,  in  that  year  of  73  B.C.,  was  silent  and 
seemingly  extinct,  though  before  another  century 
passed  it  was  to  awake  to  vital  activity.  It  was  only 
hiding  its  time  in  slumber. 

It  was  better  to  die  on  the  open  field  than  in  the 
amphitheatre,  argued  Spartacus,  and  his  followers 
agreed  with  him.  Their  position  in  the  crater  was 
a  strong  one,  and  the  news  of  their  revolt  soon 
brought  them  a  multitude  of  allies, — slaves  and  out- 
laws of  every  kind.  These  Spartacus  organized  and 
drilled,  supplying  them  with  officers  from  the  gladia- 
tors, mostly  old  soldiers,  and  placing  them  under 
rigid  discipline.  It  was  liberty  he  wanted,  not 
rapine,  and  he  did  his  utmost  to  restrain  his  lawless 
followers  from  acts  of  violence. 

Pompey,  the  chief  Roman  general  of  that  day, 
was  then  absent  in  Spain,  fighting  with  a  remnant 
of  the  Marian  forces.  Two  Roman  prsetors  led  their 
forces  against  the  gladiators,  but  were  driven  back 
with  loss,  and  the  army  of  Spartacus  swelled  day  by 
day.  The  wild  herdsmen  of  Apulia  joined  him  in 
large  numbers.  They  wore  slaves  to  their  lords, 


200  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

whom  they  hated  bitterly,  and  here  was  an  opening 
for  freedom  and  revenge. 

It  was  soon  evident  that  Rome  had  on  its  hands 
the  greatest  and  most  dangerous  of  its  servile  wars. 
Spartacus  was  brave  and  prudent,  and  possessed  the 
qualities  of  an  able  leader.  Unfortunately  for  him, 
he  led  an  unmanageable  host.  In  the  next  year  both 
the  consuls  took  the  field  against  him.  By  this  time 
his  army  had  swelled  to  more  than  one  hundred  thou- 
sand men,  and  with  these  he  pushed  his  way  north- 
ward through  the  passes  of  the  Apennines.  But  now 
insubordination  appeared.  Crixus,  one  of  his  lieuten- 
ants, ambitious  of  independent  command,  led  off  a 
large  division  of  the  army,  chiefly  Germans.  He  was 
quickly  punished  for  his  temerity,  being  surprised 
and  slain  with  the  whole  of  his  force. 

Spartacus,  wise  enough  to  know  that  he  could  not 
long  hold  out  against  the  whole  power  of  Rome, 
kept  on  northward,  hoping  to  pass  the  Alps  and  find 
a  place  of  refuge  remote  from  the  stronghold  of  his 
foes.  Both  the  consuls  attacked  him  in  his  march, 
and  both  were  defeated,  while  he  retaliated  on  Rome 
by  forcing  his  prisoners  to  fight  as  gladiators  in 
memory  of  the  slain  Crixus. 

Reaching  the  provinces  of  the  north,  his  dimin- 
ished force  was  repulsed  by  Crassus,  one  of  the 
richest  men  of  Rome,  who  had  taken  the  field  as 
praetor.  Spartacus  would  still  have  fought  his  way 
towards  the  Alps  but  for  his  followers,  whose  impa- 
tient thirst  for  rapine  forced  him  to  march  south- 
ward again. 

Every  Roman   force  that  assailed  him  on   this 


THE  REVOLT  OF  THE  GLADIATORS.      201 

march  was  hurled  back  in  defeat.  He  even  medi- 
tated an  attack  on  Eome  itself,  but  relinquished  this 
plan  as  too  desperate,  and  instead  employed  his  men 
in  collecting  arms  and  treasure  from  the  cities  of 
central  and  southern  Italy.  Discipline  was  almost 
at  an  end.  The  wild  horde  of  slaves  and  outlaws 
were  beyond  any  strict  military  control.  So  great 
and  general  were  their  ravages  that  in  a  later  day 
the  poet  Horace  promised  his  friend  a  jar  of  wine 
made  in  the  Social  War,  "  if  he  could  find  one  that 
had  escaped  the  ravages  of  roaming  Spartacus." 

In  the  year  71  B.C.  the  most  vigorous  efforts  were 
made  to  put  down  this  dangerous  revolt.  Pompey 
was  still  in  Spain.  The  only  man  at  home  of  any 
military  reputation  was  the  praetor  Crassus,  who  had 
amassed  an  enormous  fortune  by  buying  up  property 
at  famine  prices  during  the  Proscription  of  Sulla,  and 
in  speculative  measures  since. 

He  was  given  full  command,  took  the  field  with  a 
large  army,  restored  discipline  to  the  beaten  bands 
of  the  consuls  by  cruel  and  rigorous  measures,  and 
assailed  Spartacus  in  Calabria,  where  he  was  seeking 
to  rekindle  the  Servile  War,  or  slave  outbreak,  in 
Sicily.  He  had  even  engaged  with  pirate  captains 
to  transport  a  part  of  his  force  to  Sicily,  but  the 
freebooters  took  the  money  and  sailed  away  without 
the  men. 

And  now  began  a  struggle  for  life  and  death. 
Spartacus  was  in  the  narrowest  part  of  the  foot  of 
Southern  Italy.  Crassus  determined  to  keep  him 
there  by  building  strong  lines  of  intrenchment 
across  the  neck  of  land.  Spartacus  attacked  hia 


202  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

works  twice  in  one  day,  but  each  time  was  repulsed 
with  great  slaughter.  But  he  defended  himself  vig- 
orously. 

Pompey  was  now  returning  from  Spain.  Crassus, 
not  caring  to  be  robbed  of  the  results  of  his  labors, 
determined  to  assault  Spartacus  in  his  camp.  But 
before  he  could  do  so  the  daring  gladiator  attacked 
his  lines  again,  forced  his  way  through,  and  marched 
for  Brundusium,  where  he  hoped  to  find  ships  that 
would  convey  him  and  his  men  from  Italy. 

As  it  happened,  a  large  body  of  Eoman  veterans, 
returning  from  Macedonia,  had  just  reached  Brun- 
dusium, and  undertook  its  defence.  Foiled  in  his 
purpose,  Spartacus  turned  upon  the  pursuing  army 
of  Crassus,  like  a  wolf  at  bay,  and  attacked  it  with 
the  energy  of  desperation.  The  battle  that  ensued 
was  contested  with  the  fiercest  courage.  Spartacus 
and  his  men  were  fighting  for  their  lives,  and  the 
result  continued  doubtful  till  the  brave  gladiator  was 
wounded  in  the  thigh  by  a  javelin.  Falling  on  his 
knee,  he  fought  with  the  courage  of  a  hero  until, 
overpowered  by  numbers,  he  fell  dead. 

His  death  decided  the  conflict.  Most  of  his  fol 
lowers  were  slain  on  the  field.  A  strong  body 
escaped  to  the  mountains,  but  these  were  pursued, 
and  many  fell.  Five  thousand  of  them  made  their 
way  to  the  north  of  Italy,  where  they  were  met  by 
Pompey,  on  his  return  from  Spain,  and  slaughtered 
to  a  man. 

Crassus  took  six  thousand  prisoners,  and  these 
ne  disposed  of  in  the  cruel  Roman  way  of  dealing 
with  revolted  slaves,  hanging  or  crucifying  the 


THE  REVOLT  OF  THE  GLADIATORS.       203 

whole  of  them  along  the  road  between  Rome  and 
Capua. 

Thus  ended  far  the  most  important  outbreak  of 
Roman  gladiators  and  slaves.  The  south  of  Italy 
suffered  horribly  from  its  ravages,  but  not  through 
any  act  of  Spartacus,  who  throughout  showed  a 
moderation  equal  to  his  courage  and  military  ability. 
Had  it  not  been  for  the  lawless  character  of  his  fol- 
lowers his  career  might  have  had  a  very  different 
ending,  for  he  had  shown  himself  a  commander  of 
rare  ability  and  unconquerable  courage. 


CAESAR  AND  THE  PIRATES. 

WE  have  spoken  of  the  pirates  who  agreed  to 
convey  the  forces  of  Spartacus  from  Italy  to  Sicily, 
but  faithlessly  sailed  away  with  his  money  and  with- 
out his  men.  From  times  immemorial  the  Mediter- 
ranean had  been  ravaged  by  pirate  fleets,  which 
made  the  inlets  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  isles  of  the 
Archipelago  their  places  of  shelter,  whence  they 
dashed  out  on  rapid  raids,  and  within  which  they 
vanished  when  attacked. 

This  piracy  reached  its  highest  power  during  and 
after  the  Social  and  Civil  Wars  of  Eome,  the  outlaws 
taking  prompt  advantage  of  the  distractions  of  the 
times,  and  gaining  a  strength  and  audacity  unknown 
before.  Their  chief  places  of  refuge  were  in  the 
coast  districts  of  Cilicia  and  Pisidia,  in  Asia  Minor, 
while  in  the  mountain  valleys  which  led  down  from 
Taurus  to  that  coast  they  had  strongholds  difficult 
of  access,  and  enabling  them  to  defy  attack  by  land. 

They  were  now  aided  by  Mithridates,  who  sup- 
plied them  with  money  and  encouraged  their  raids. 
So  great  became  their  audacity  that  they  carried  off 
important  personages  from  the  coast  of  Italy,  among 
them  two  praetors,  whom  they  held  to  ransom.  They 
ravaged  all  unguarded  shores,  and  are  said  to  have 
204 


(LESAR   AND   THE   PIRATES.  205 

captured  in  all  four  hundred  important  towns.  The 
riches  gained  in  these  raids  were  displayed  with  the 
ostentation  of  conquerors.  The  sails  of  their  ships 
were  dyed  with  that  costly  Tyrian  purple  which  at 
a  later  date  was  reserved  for  the  robes  of  emperors; 
their  oars  were  inlaid  with  silver,  and  their  pennants 
glittered  with  gold.  As  for  the  merchant  fleets  of 
Home,  they  made  their  journeys  under  constant  risk, 
and  there  was  danger,  if  the  pirates  were  not  sup- 
pressed, that  they  would  cut  off  the  entire  grain- 
supply  from  Africa  and  Sicily. 

The  most  interesting  story  told  in  connection  with 
these  marauders  is  connected  with  the  youthful  days 
of  Julius  Caesar,  afterwards  so  great  a  man  in  Rome. 

In  the  year  76  B.C.  Ca3sar,  then  a  young  man  of 
twenty-four,  and  seemingly  given  over  to  mere  en- 
joyment of  life,  with  no  indications  of  political  aspi- 
ration, was  on  his  way  to  the  island  of  Rhodes,  where 
he  wished  to  perfect  himself  in  oratory  in  the  famous 
school  of  Apollonius  Melo,  in  which  Cicero,  a  few 
years  before,  had  gained  instruction  in  the  art. 
Cicero  had  taught  Rome  the  full  power  of  oratory, 
and  Caesar,  who  was  no  mean  orator  by  nature,  and 
recognized  the  usefulness  of  the  art,  naturally  sought 
instruction  from  Cicero's  teacher. 

He  was  travelling  as  a  gentleman  of  rank,  but  on 
his  way  was  taken  prisoner  by  pirates,  who,  deeming 
him  a  person  of  great  distinction,  held  him  at  a  high 
ransom.  For  six  weeks  Ca3sar  remained  in  their 
hands,  waiting  until  his  ransom  should  be  paid.  He 
was  in  no  respect  downcast  by  his  misfortune,  but 
took  part  freely  in  the  games  and  pastimes  of  the 
18 


206  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

pirates,  and,  according  to  Plutarch,  treated  them 
with  such  disdain  that  whenever  their  noise  dis- 
turbed his  sleep  he  sent  orders  to  them  to  keep 
silence.  In  his  familiar  conversations  with  the 
chiefs  he  plainly  told  them  that  he  would  one  day 
crucify  them  all.  Doubtless  they  laughed  heartily 
at  this  pleasantry,  as  they  deemed  it,  but  they  were 
to  find  it  a  grim  sort  of  jest. 

Caesar  was  released  at  last,  the  ransom  paid 
amounting  to  about  fifty  thousand  dollars.  He  lost 
not  a  moment  in  carrying  out  his  threat.  Obtaining 
a  fleet  of  Milesian  vessels,  he  sailed  immediately  to 
the  island  in  which  he  had  been  held  captive,  and 
descended  upon  the  pirates  so  suddenly  that  he  took 
them  prisoners  while  they  were  engaged  in  dividing 
their  plunder.  Carrying  them  to  Pergamus,  he 
handed  them  over  to  the  civil  authorities,  by  whom 
his  promise  of  crucifying  them  all  was  duly  carried 
out.  Then  he  went  to  Khodes,  and  spent  two  years 
in  the  study  of  elocution.  He  had  proved  himself 
an  awkward  kind  of  prey  for  pirates. 

These  worthies  continued  their  depredations,  and 
became  at  length  so  annoying  that  extraordinary 
measures  were  taken  for  their  suppression.  Pompey, 
then  the  most  powerful  man  in  Home,  was  given  ab- 
solute control  over  the  Mediterranean.  This  was 
not  done  without  opposition,  for  it  was  feared  that 
he  aspired  to  kingly  rule.  "  You  aspire  to  be  Rom- 
ulus ;  beware  of  the  fate  of  Romulus,"  said  some  of 
the  opposing  senators. 

Despite  opposition  the  power  was  given  him,  and 
he  used  it  with  remarkable  results.  A  large  fleet 


OSJSAR   AND    THE    PIRATES.  207 

was  at  once  got  ready  and  put  to  sea,  confining 
its  operations  at  first  to  the  west  of  the  Mediterra- 
nean, and  driving  the  piratical  fleets  towards  their 
lurking-places  in  the  east.  Land  troops  meanwhile 
guarded  the  coasts.  In  the  brief  space  of  forty  days 
he  reported  to  the  senate  that  the  whole  sea  west  of 
Greece  was  cleared  of  pirates. 

Then  he  sailed  for  the  Archipelago,  swept  its  in- 
lets, spread  his  ships  everywhere,  and  drove  the  foe 
towards  Cilicia.  Here  they  gathered  their  fleet  and 
gave  him  battle,  but  suffered  a  total  defeat.  A  sur- 
render followed,  to  which  he  won  them  over  by  leni- 
ent terms.  In  three  months  from  the  day  he  began 
his  work  the  war  was  ended,  and  the  pirates  who  had 
so  long  troubled  the  republic  of  Eome  had  retired 
from  business. 


CAESAR  AND  POMPEY. 

THERE  were  three  leaders  in  Rome,  Pompey, 
whom  Sulla  had  named  the  Great,  Crassus,  the  rich, 
and  Caesar,  the  shrewd  and  wise.  Two  of  these  had 
reached  their  utmost  height.  For  Pompey  there  was 
to  be  no  more  greatness,  for  Crassus  no  more  riches. 
But  Caesar  was  the  coming  man  of  Rome.  After 
a  youth  given  to  profligate  pleasures,  in  which  he 
spent  money  as  fast  as  Crassus  collected  it,  and  ac- 
cumulated debt  more  rapidly  than  Pompey  accumu- 
lated fame,  the  innate  powers  of  the  man  began  to 
declare  themselves.  He  studied  oratory  and  made 
his  mark  in  the  Roman  Forum ;  he  studied  the 
political  situation,  and  step  by  step  made  himself  a 
power  among  men.  He  was  shrewd  enough  to 
cultivate  Pompey,  then  the  Roman  favorite,  and 
brought  himself  into  closer  relations  with  him  by 
marrying  his  relative.  Steadily  he  grew  into  public 
favor  and  respect,  and  laid  his  hands  on  the  reins  of 
control. 

There  was  a  fourth  man  of  prominence,  Cicero, 
the  great  scholar,  philosopher,  and  orator.  He  pros- 
ecuted Verres,  who,  as  governor  of  Sicily,  had  com- 
mitted frightful  excesses,  and  drove  him  from  Rome. 
He  prosecuted  Catiline,  who  had  made  a  conspiracy 
208 


CJESAR  AND   POMPET.  209 

to  seize  the  government,  and  even  to  burn  Borne, 
The  conspirators  were  foiled  and  Catiline  killed. 
But  Cicero,  earnest  and  eloquent  as  he  was,  lacked 
manliness  and  courage,  and  was  driven  into  exile  by 
his  enemies. 

There  remained  the  three  leaders,  Pompey,  Caesar, 
and  Crassus,  and  these  three  made  a  secret  compact 
to  control  the  government,  forming  what  became 
known  as  a  triumvirate,  or  three  man  power.  Pom- 
pey married  Julia,  the  young  and  beautiful  daughter 
of  Caesar,  and  the  two  seemed  very  closely  united. 

Caesar  was  elected  consul,  and  in  this  position  won 
public  favor  by  proposing  some  highly  popular  laws. 
After  his  year  as  consul  he  was  made  governor  of 
Gaul,  and  now  began  an  extraordinary  career.  The 
man  who  had  by  turns  shown  himself  a  dissolute 
spendthrift,  an  orator,  and  a  political  leader,  sud- 
denly developed  a  new  power,  and  proved  himself 
one  of  the  greatest  soldiers  the  world  has  ever 
known. 

Gaul,  as  tlien  known,  had  two  divisions, — Cis- 
alpine Gaul,  or  the  Gaulish  settlements  in  Northern 
Italy;  and  Transalpine  Gaul,  or  Gaul  beyond  the 
Alps,  including  the  present  countries  of  France  and 
Switzerland.  In  the  latter  country  Borne  possessed 
only  a  narrow  strip  of  land,  then  known  as  the 
Province,  since  then  known  as  the  country  of 
Provence. 

From  this  centre  Caesar,  with  the  small  army 
under  his  command,  consisting  of  three  legions,  en- 
tered upon  a  career  of  conquest  which  astonished 
Eome  and  drew  upon  him  the  eyes  of  the  civilized 
n.— o  18* 


210  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

world.  He  had  hardly  been  appointed  when  he  re- 
ceived word  that  the  Helvetian  tribes  of  Switzerland 
were  advancing  on  Geneva,  the  northern  outpost  of 
the  Province,  with  a  view  of  invading  the  West. 
He  hastened  thither,  met  and  defeated  them,  killed 
a  vast  multitude,  and  drove  the  remnant  back  to 
their  own  country.  Then,  invited  by  some  northern 
tribes,  he  attacked  a  great  German  band  which  had 
invaded  Northern  Gaul,  and  defeated  them  so  utterly 
that  few  escaped  across  the  Rhine.  From  that  point 
he  made  his  way  into  and  conquered  Belgium.  In 
a  year's  time  he  had  vastly  extended  the  Roman 
dominion  in  the  West. 

For  nine  years  this  career  of  conquest  continued. 
The  barbarian  Gauls  proved  fierce  and  valiant  sol- 
diers, but  at  the  end  of  that  time  they  had  been 
completely  subdued  and  made  passive  subjects  of 
Rome.  Caesar  even  crossed  the  sea  into  Britain,  and 
took  the  first  step  towards  the  conquest  of  that 
island,  of  which  Rome  had  barely  heard  before. 

During  this  career  of  conquest  many  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  men  were  slain.  But,  then,  Caesar  was 
victorious  and  Rome  triumphant,  and  what  mattered 
it  if  a  million  or  two  of  barbarians  were  sacrificed 
to  the  demon  of  conquest?  It  mattered  little  to 
Rome,  in  which  great  city  barbarian  life  was  scarcely 
worth  a  second  thought.  It  mattered  little  to  Caesar, 
who,  like  all  great  conquerors,  was  quite  willing  to 
mount  to  power  on  a  ladder  of  human  lives. 

Meanwhile  what  were  Caesar's  partners  in  the 
Triumvirate  doing?  When  Ceasar  was  given  the 
province  of  Gaul,  Pompey  was  made  governor  of 


OSSAR   AND    POMPEY.  211 

Spain,  and  Crassus  of  Syria.  Crassus,  who  had 
gained  some  military  fame  by  overcoming  Spar- 
tacus  the  gladiatoi*,  wished  to  gain  more,  and  sailed 
for  Asia,  where  he  stirred  up  a  war  with  distant 
Parthia.  That  was  the  end  of  Crassus.  He  marched 
into  the  desert  of  Mesopotamia,  and  left  his  body  on 
the  sands.  His  head  was  sent  to  Orodes,  the  Par- 
thian king,  who  ordered  molten  gold  to  be  poured 
into  his  mouth, — a  ghastly  commentary  on  his  thirst 
for  wealth. 

Pompey  left  Spain  to  take  care  of  itself,  and  re- 
mained in  Rome,  where  he  sought  to  add  to  his 
popularity  by  building  a  great  stone  theatre,  large 
enough  to  hold  forty  thousand  people,  where  for 
many  days  he  amused  the  people  with  plays  and 
games.  Here,  for  the  first  time,  a  rhinoceros  was 
shown.  Eighteen  elephants  were  killed  by  Libyan 
hunters,  and  five  hundred  lions  were  slain,  while 
hosts  of  gladiators  fought  for  life  and  honor. 

While  thus  seeking  popular  favor,  Pompey  was 
secretly  working  against  the  interests  of  Caesar,  of 
whose  fame  he  had  grown  jealous.  His  wife  Julia 
died,  and  he  joined  his  strength  with  that  of  the 
aristocrats ;  while  Caesar,  a  nephew  of  old  Marius, 
was  looked  upon  as  a  leader  of  the  party  of  the 
people. 

Pompey's  power  and  influence  over  the  senate  in- 
creased until  he  was  virtually  dictator  in  Rome. 
Caesar's  ten  years'  governorship  in  Gaul  would  ex- 
pire on  the  1st  of  January,  49  B.C.,  and  it  was  re- 
solved by  Pompey  and  the  senate  to  deprive  him  of 
the  command  of  the  army.  But  Caesar  was  not  the 


212  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

man  to  be  dealt  with  in  this  summary  manner.  His 
career  of  conquest  ended,  he  entered  his  province  of 
Cisalpine  Gaul,  or  Northern  Italy,  where  he  was  re- 
ceived as  a  great  hero  and  conqueror.  From  here 
he  sent  secret  agents  to  Rome,  bribed  with  large 
sums  a  number  of  important  persons,  and  took  other 
steps  to  guard  his  interests. 

Meanwhile  the  senate  tried  to  disarm  Csesar  by 
unfair  means.  They  had  the  power  to  shorten  or 
lengthen  the  year  as  they  pleased,  and  announced 
that  that  year  would  end  on  November  12,  and  that 
Csesar  must  resign  his  authority  on  the  13th.  Curio, 
a  tribune  of  Rome  and  Caesar's  agent,  said  that  it 
was  only  fair  that  Pompey  also  should  give  up  the 
command  of  the  army  which  he  had  near  Rome. 
This  he  refused  to  do,  and  Curio  publicly  declared 
that  he  was  trying  to  make  himself  a  tyrant. 

Finally  the  senate  decreed  that  each  general 
should  give  up  one  legion,  to  be  used  in  a  war  with 
the  Parthians.  There  was  no  such  war,  but  it  was 
pretended  that  there  soon  would  be.  Pompey  agreed, 
but  he  called  upon  Csesar  to  send  him  back  a  legion 
which  he  had  lent  him  three  years  before.  Csesar 
did  not  hesitate  to  do  so :  he  sent  Pompey's  legion 
and  his  own ;  but  he  took  care  to  win  the  soldiers  by 
giving  each  a  valuable  present  as  he  went  away. 
These  legions  were  not  sent  to  Asia,  but  to  Capua. 
The  senate  wanted  them  for  use  nearer  than  Parthia. 

Ccesar  was  then  at  Ravenna,  a  sea-side  city  on  the 
southern  limit  of  his  province.  South  of  it  flowed 
a  little  stream  called  the  Rubicon,  which  formed  his 
border-line.  Here  he  took  a  bold  step.  He  sent  a 


CAESAR   AND   POMPEY.  213 

letter  to  the  senate,  offering  to  give  up  his  command 
if  Pompey  would  do  the  same.  A  violent  debate 
followed  in  the  senate,  and  a  decree  was  passed  that 
unless  Caesar  laid  down  his  command  by  a  certain 
day  he  should  be  declared  an  outlaw  and  enemy  of 
Rome.  At  the  same  time  the  two  consuls  were 
made  dictators,  and  the  two  tribunes  who  favored 
Csesar — one  of  them  the  afterwards  famous  Marc 
Antony — fled  for  safety  from  Rome. 

The  decree  of  the  senate  was  equivalent  to  a  dec- 
laration of  war.  On  the  one  side  was  Pompey, 
proud,  over-confident,  and  unprepared.  On  the  other 
was  Csesar,  knowing  his  strength,  satisfied  in  the 
power  of  the  money  he  had  so  freely  distributed, 
and  sure  of  his  men.  He  called  his  soldiers  to- 
gether and  asked  if  they  would  support  him.  They 
answered  that  they  would  follow  wherever  he  led. 
At  once  he  marched  for  the  Rubicon,  the  limit  of 
his  province,  to  cross  which  stream  meant  an  inva- 
sion of  Italy  and  civil  war. 

Plutarch  tells  us  that  he  halted  here  and  deeply 
meditated,  troubled  by  the  thought  that  to  cross 
that  stream  meant  the  death  of  thousands  of  his 
countrymen.  After  a  period  of  such  meditation,  he 
cried  aloud,  "The  die  is  cast;  let  us  go  where  the 
gods  and  the  injustice  of  our  foes  direct!"  and,  spur- 
ring his  horse  forward,  he  plunged  into  the  stream. 

This  story,  which  has  been  effectively  used  by 
a  great  epic  poet  of  Rome,  probably  relates  what 
never  happened.  From  all  we  know  of  Caesar,  the 
question  of  bloodshed  in  attaining  the  aims  of  his 
ambition  did  not  greatly  trouble  his  mind.  Yet  the 


214  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

story  has  taken  hold,  and  "to  cross  the  Rubicon" 
has  become  a  proverb,  signifying  the  taking  of  a 
step  of  momentous  importance. 

Caesar,  after  the  legions  sent  the  senate,  had  but 
a  single  legion  left  with  him.  He  sent  orders  to 
others  to  join  him  with  all  haste,  but  they  were  dis- 
tant. As  for  Pompey,  knowing  and  despising  the 
weakness  of  his  rival,  he  had  made  no  preparations. 
He  had  Caesar's  two  legions  at  Capua  and  one  of 
his  own  at  Rome,  while  thousands  of  Sulla's  vet- 
erans were  settled  in  the  country  round.  "  I  have 
but  to  stamp  my  foot,"  he  said,  "  and  armed  men 
will  start  from  the  soil  of  Italy." 

He  did  not  stamp,  or,  if  he  did,  the  armed  men 
did  not  start.  Caesar  marched  southward  with  his 
accustomed  rapidity.  Town  after  town  opened  its 
gates  to  him.  Labienus,  one  of  his  principal  officers, 
deserted  to  Pompey.  Caesar  showed  his  contempt 
by  sending  his  baggage  after  him.  Two  legions 
from  Gaul  having  reached  him,  he  pushed  more 
boldly'  still  to  the  south.  The  cities  taken  were 
treated  as  friends ;  there  was  no  pillage,  no  violence. 
Everywhere  Caesar  won  golden  opinions  by  his 
humanity. 

Meanwhile  Pompey's  armed  men  came  not;  his 
rival  was  rapidly  approaching ;  he  and  his  party  of 
the  senate  fled  from  Rome.  They  reached  Brundu- 
sium,  where  Caesar  with  six  legions  quickly  ap- 
peared. The  town  was  strong,  and  Pompey  took 
his  time  to  embark  his  men  and  sail  from  Italy.  Dis- 
appointed of  his  prey,  Caesar  turned  back,  and  en- 
tered Rome  on  April  1,  now  full  lord  and  master  of 


CAESAR    AND    POMPEY.  215 

Italy  and  its  capital  city.  In  the  treasury  of  that 
city  was  a  sacred  hoai-d  of  money,  which  had  been 
set  aside  since  the  invasion  of  the  Gauls,  centuries 
before.  The  people  voted  this  money  for  his  use. 
There  was  no  more  danger  from  the  Gauls,  it  was 
said,  for  they  had  all  become  subjects  of  Eome. 
Yet  the  keeper  of  the  treasury  refused  to  produce 
the  keys,  and  when  Csesar  ordered  the  doors  to  be 
broken  open,  tried  to  bar  his  passage  into  the  sacred 
chamber. 

"  Stand  aside,  young  man,"  said  Caesar,  with  stern 
dignity ;  "  it  is  easier  for  me  to  do  than  to  say." 

Cffisar  was  not  the  man  to  rest  while  an  enemy 
was  at  large.  Pompey  had  gone  to  the  East.  There 
was  no  fleet  with  which  to  follow  him ;  and  in  Spain 
Pompey  had  an  army  of  veterans,  who  might  enter 
Italy  as  soon  as  he  left  it.  These  must  first  be  dealt 
with. 

This  did  not  delay  him  long.  Before  the  year 
closed  all  Spain  was  his.  Most  of  the  soldiers  of 
Pompey  joined  his  army.  Those  who  did  not  were 
dismissed  unharmed.  Everywhere  he  showed  the 
greatest  leniency,  and  everywhere  won  friends.  On 
his  return  to  Eome  he  gained  new  friends  by  pass- 
ing laws  relieving  debtors  and  restoring  their  civil 
rights  to  the  children  of  Sulla's  victims. 

He  remained  in  Eome  only  eleven  days,  and  then 
sailed  for  Greece,  where  Pompey  had  gathered  a 
large  army.  It  was  January  4,  48  B.C  ,  when  he 
sailed.  On  June  6  of  the  same  year  was  fought,  at 
Pbarsalia,  in  Thessaly,  a  great  battle  which  decided 
the  fate  of  the  Eoman  world. 


216  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Pompey's  army  consisted  of  about  forty-four  thou- 
sand men.  Ceesar  had  but  half  as  many.  But  his 
men  were  all  veterans ;  many  of  those  of  Pompey 
were  new  levies,  collected  in  Asia  and  Macedonia. 
The  battle  was  fierce  and  desperate.  During  its 
course  the  cavalry  of  Pompey  attacked  Caesar's  weak 
troops  and  drove  them  back.  The  infantry  advanced 
to  their  support,  and  struck  straight  at  the  faces  of 
the  foe.  Plutarch  tells  us  that  this  cavalry  was  made 
up  of  young  Eomans,  of  the  aristocratic  class  and 
proud  of  their  beauty,  and  that  the  order  was  given  to 
Cffisar's  soldiers  to  spoil  their  beauty  for  them.  But 
this  story,  like  many  told  by  Plutarch,  lacks  proof. 

Whatever  was  the  cause,  the  cavalry  were  broken 
and  fled  in  disorder.  Csesar's  reserve  force  now  at- 
tacked Pompey's  worn  troops,  who  gave  way  every- 
where. Caesar  ordered  that  all  Eomans  should  be 
spared,  and  only  the  Asiatics  pursued.  The  legions, 
hearing  of  this,  ceased  to  resist.  The  foreign  soldiers 
fled,  after  great  slaughter.  Pompey  rode  hastily 
from  the  field. 

The  camp  was  taken.  The  booty  captured  was 
immense.  But  Csesar  would  not  let  his  soldiers  rest 
or  plunder  till  they  had  completed  their  work.  This 
proved  easy ;  all  the  Eomans  submitted ;  the  Asiatics 
fled.  Pompey  put  to  sea,  where  he  had  still  a  power- 
ful fleet.  Africa  was  his,  and  he  determined  to  take 
refuge  in  Egypt.  It  proved  that  he  had  enemies 
there.  A  small  boat  was  sent  off  to  bring  him 
ashore.  Among  those  on  board  was  an  officer  named 
Septimius,  who  had  served  under  Pompey  in  the  war 
with  the  pirates. 


CAESAR   AND   POMPEY.  217 

Pompey  recognized  his  old  officer,  and  entered  the 
boat  alone,  his  wife  and  friends  watching  from  the 
vessel  as  he  was  rowed  ashore.  On  the  beach  a 
number  of  persons  were  collected,  as  if  to  receive 
him  with  honor.  The  boat  stopped.  Pompey  took 
the  hand  of  the  person  next  him  to  assist  him  to  rise. 
As  he  did  so  Septimius,  who  stood  behind,  struck 
him  with  his  sword.  Pompey,  finding  that  he  was 
among  enemies,  made  no  resistance,  and  the  next 
blow  laid  him  low  in  death.  His  assassins  cut  off 
his  head  and  left  his  body  on  the  beach.  Here  one 
of  his  freedmen  and  an  old  soldier  of  his  army  broke 
up  a  fishing-boat  and  made  him  a  rude  funeral  pile. 
Such  were  the  obsequies  of  the  one-time  master  of 
the  world. 

The  battle  of  Pharsalia  practically  ended  the 
struggle  that  made  Caesar  lord  of  Eome.  Some 
more  fighting  was  necessary.  Africa  was  still  in 
arms.  But  a  few  short  campaigns  sufficed  to  bring 
it  to  terms,  while  a  campaign  against  a  son  of  Mith- 
ridates  ended  in  five  days,  Casar's  victory  being  an 
nounced  to  the  senate  in  three  short  words,  "  Veni, 
vidi,  vici"  (I  came,  I  saw,  I  conquered).  Then  he 
returned  to  Rome,  where  he  shed  not  a  drop  of  the 
blood  of  his  enemies,  though  that  of  gladiators  and 
wild  animals  was  freely  spilled  in  the  gorgeous 
games  and  festivals  with  which  he  amused  the  sov- 
ereign people. 


19 


THE  ASSASSINATION  OF 
CAESAR. 

THE  republic  of  Rome  was  at  an  end.  The  army 
had  become  the  power,  and  the  will  of  the  head  of 
the  army  was  the  law,  of  the  state.  Caesar  celebrated 
his  victories  with  grand  triumphs ;  but  he  celebrated 
them  more  notably  still  by  a  clemency  that  signified 
his  innate  nobility  of  character.  Instead  of  dyeing 
the  streets  of  Rome  with  blood,  as  Marius  and  Sulla 
had  done  before  him,  he  proclaimed  a  general  am- 
nesty, and  his  rise  to  power  was  not  signalized  by 
the  slaughter  of  one  of  his  foes. 

He  signalized  it,  on  the  contrary,  by  an  activity 
in  civil  reform  as  marked  as  had  been  his  energy  in 
war.  The  title  and  privilege  of  Roman  citizenship 
had  so  far  been  confined  to  Italians.  He  extended 
it  to  many  parts  of  Gaul  and  Spain.  He  formed 
plans  to  drain  the  Pontine  marshes,  to  make  a  survey 
and  map  of  the  empire,  to  form  a  code  of  laws,  and 
other  great  works,  which  he  did  not  live  to  fulfil. 
Of  all  his  reforms,  the  best  known  is  the  revision 
of  the  Calendar.  Before  his  time  the  Roman  year 
was  three  hundred  and  fifty-five  days  long,  an  extra 
month  being  occasionally  added,  so  as  to  regain  the 
lost  days.  But  this  was  very  irregularly  done,  and 
the  civil  year  had  got  to  be  far  away  from  the  solar 
218 


THE   ASSASSINATION   OP   C-ffiSAR.  219 

year.  To  correct  this  Caesar  was  obliged  to  add 
ninety  days  to  the  year  46  B.C.,  which  was  therefore 
given  the  unprecedented  length  of  four  hundred  and 
forty-five  days.  He  ordered  that  the  year  in  future 
should  be  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  and  one- 
fourth  days  in  length,  a  change  which  brought  it  very 
nearly,  but  not  quite,  to  the  true  length.  A  new  re- 
form was  made  in  1582,  by  Pope  Gregory  XIII.,  which 
made  the  civil  and  solar  years  almost  exactly  agree. 

Caesar  did  not  live  to  see  his  reforms  consummated. 
He  was  murdered,  perhaps  because  he  had  refused 
to  murder.  In  a  few  months  after  he  had  brought 
the  civil  war  to  an  end  he  fell  the  victim  of  assassins. 
The  story  of  his  death  is  famous  in  Roman  history, 
and  must  here  be  told. 

After  his  triumphs  Caesar,  who  had  been  dictator 
twice  before,  was  named  dictator  for  the  term  often 
years.  He  was  also  made  censor  for  three  years. 
These  offices  gave  him  such  unlimited  power  that  he 
was  declared  absolute  master  of  the  lives  and  for- 
tunes of  the  citizens  and  subjects  of  Eome.  Impera- 
tor  men  called  him,  a  term  we  translate  emperor,  and 
after  his  return  from  Spain,  where  he  overthrew  the 
last  army  of  his  foes,  the  senate  named  him  dictator 
and  imperator  for  life. 

These  high  honors  were  not  sufficient  for  Csesar's 
ambition.  He  wished  to  be  made  king.  He  had  no 
son  of  his  own,  but  desired  to  make  his  power 
hereditary,  and  chose  his  grandnephew  Octavius  as 
his  heir.  But  he  was  to  find  the  people  resolutely 
bent  on  having  no  king  over  Eome. 

To  try  their  temper  some  of  his  friends  placed  a 


220  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

crown  on  his  statue  in  the  Forum.  Two  of  the  trib- 
unes tore  it  off,  and  the  crowd  loudly  applauded. 
Later,  at  the  festival  of  the  Alban  Mount,  some 
voices  in  the  crowd  hailed  him  as  king.  But  the 
mutterings  of  the  multitude  grew  so  loud,  that  he 
quickly  cried,  "  I  am  no  king,  but  Csesar." 

At  the  feast  of  the  Lupercalia,  on  February  15,  he 
was  approached  by  Marc  Antony,  as  he  sat  in  his 
golden  chair,  and  offered  an  embroidered  band,  such 
as  the  sovereigns  of  Asia  wore  on  their  heads.  The 
crowd  failed  to  applaud,  and  Csesar  pushed  it  aside. 
Then  the  multitude  broke  out  in  a  roar  of  applause. 
Again  and  again  he  rejected  the  glittering  bauble, 
and  again  the  people  broke  into  loud  cries  of  ap- 
proval. It  was  evident  that  they  would  have  no 
king.  At  a  later  date  it  was  moved  in  the  senate 
that  Csesar  should  be  king  in  the  provinces;  but  he 
died  before  this  decree  could  be  put  in  effect. 

There  was  discontent  at  Rome.  Even  the  clem- 
ency of  Csesar  had  made  him  enemies,  for  there  were 
many  who  hoped  to  profit  by  proscription.  His  jus- 
tice made  foes  among  those  who  wished  to  grow  rich 
through  extortion  and  oppression.  He  secluded  him- 
self while  engaged  on  his  reforms,  and  this  lost  him 
popularity.  A  conspiracy  was  organized  against 
him  by  a  soldier  named  Caius  Cassius  and  others  of 
the  discontented.  For  leader  they  selected  Marcus 
Junius  Brutus,  who  believed  himself  a  descendant  of 
the  Brutus  of  old,  and  was  won  to  their  plot  by  being 
told  that,  while  his  great  ancestor  had  expelled  the 
last  king  of  Rome,  he  was  resting  content  under  the 
rule  of  a  new  king. 


THE   ASSASSINATION   OP   (LESAR.  221 

Brutus,  at  length  convinced  that  Caesar  was  seek- 
ing to  overthrow  the  .Roman  republic,  and  that 
patriotism  required  him  to  emulate  the  famous 
Brutus  of  old,  joined  the  conspiracy,  which  now  in- 
cluded more  than  sixty  persons,  most  of  whom  had 
received  benefits  and  honors  from  the  man  they 
wished  to  kill.  But  no  considerations  of  gratitude 
prevailed ;  they  determined  on  Caesar's  death  ;  and 
the  meeting  of  the  senate  called  for  the  Ides  of 
March  (March  15)  was  fixed  for  the  time  and  place 
of  the  projected  murder. 

The  morning  of  that  day  seemed  full  of  omens 
and  warnings.  The  secret  was  oozing  out.  Caesar 
received  more  than  one  intimation  of  impending 
danger.  A  soothsayer  had  even  bidden  him  to 
"  beware  of  the  Ides  of  March."  During  the  pre- 
ceding night  his  wife  was  so  disturbed  by  dreams 
that  in  the  morning  she  begged  him  not  to  go  that 
day  to  the  senate,  as  she  was  sure  some  peril  was  at 
hand.  Her  words  failed  to  trouble  Caesar's  resolute 
mind,  but  to  quiet  her  apprehensions  he  agreed  not 
to  go,  and  directed  Marc  Antony  to  preside  over  the 
senate  in  his  stead. 

When  this  word  was  brought  to  the  assembled 
senate  the  conspirators  were  in  despair.  Their  secret 
was  known  to  too  many  to  remain  a  secret  long. 
Even  a  day's  delay  might  be  fatal.  An  hour  might 
put  Caesar  on  his  guard.  What  was  to  be  done? 
Unless  their  victim  could  he  brought  to  the  senate 
chamber  all  would  be  lost. 

Decimus  Brutus,  one  of  the  conspirators  who  had 
been  favored  by  Caesar's  bounty,  went  hastily  to  his 
19* 


222  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

house,  and,  telling  him  that  the  senate  proposed  that 
day  to  make  him  king  of  the  provinces,  bade  him 
not  to  yield  to  such  idle  matters  as  auguries  and 
dreams,  but  show  himself  above  any  such  supersti- 
tious weakness.  These  cunning  arguments  induced 
Caesar  to  change  his  mind,  and  he  called  for  his  litter 
and  was  carried  forth. 

On  his  way  to  the  senate  new  intimations  of  dan- 
ger came  to  him.  A  slave  had  in  some  way  dis- 
covered the  conspiracy,  and  tried  to  force  himself 
through  the  crowd  to  the  dictator's  litter,  but  was 
driven  back  by  the  throng.  Another  informant  was 
more  fortunate.  A  Greek  philosopher,  Artemidorus 
by  name,  had  also  discovered  the  conspiracy,  and 
succeeded  in  reaching  Caesar's  side.  He  thrust  into 
his  hand  a  roll  of  paper  containing  a  full  account  of 
the  impending  peril.  But  the  star  of  Caesar  that 
day  was  against  him.  Thinking  the  roll  to  contain 
a  petition  of  some  sort,  he  laid  it  in  the  litter  by  his 
side,  to  examine  at  a  more  convenient  time.  And 
thus  he  went  on  to  his  death,  despite  all  the  warnings 
sent  him  by  the  fates. 

The  conspirators  meanwhile  were  far  from  easy 
in  mind.  There  were  signs  among  them  that  their 
plot  had  leaked  out.  Casca,  one  of  their  number, 
was  accosted  by  a  friend,  "Ah,  Casca,  Brutus  has 
told  me  your  secret."  The  conspirator  started  in 
alarm,  but  was  relieved  by  the  next  words,  "  Where 
will  you  find  money  for  the  expenses  of  the  aedile- 
ship?"  The  man  evidently  referred  to  an  expected 
office. 

Another  senator,  Popillius  Lsenas,  hit  the  mark 


THE   ASSASSINATION    OF   C^SAR.  223 

closer.  "  You  have  my  good  wishes ;  but  what  you 
do,  do  quickly,"  he  said  to  Brutus  and  Cassius. 

The  alarm  caused  by  his  words  was  doubled  when 
he  stepped  up  to  Caesar,  on  his  entrance  to  the 
chamber,  and  began  to  whisper  in  his  ear.  Cassius 
was  so  terrified  that  he  grasped  his  dagger  with  the 
thought  of  killing  himself.  He  was  stopped  by 
Brutus,  who  quietly  said  that  Popillius  seemed  rather 
to  be  asking  a  favor  than  telling  a  secret.  Whatever 
his  purpose,  Caesar  was  not  checked,  but  moved 
quietly  on  and  took  his  seat. 

Immediately  Cimber,  one  of  the  conspirators,  ap- 
proached with  a  petition,  in  which  he  begged  for 
the  recall  of  his  brother  from  banishment.  The 
others  pressed  round,  praying  Caesar  to  grant  his 
request.  Displeased  by  their  importunity,  Caesar 
attempted  to  rise,  but  was  pulled  down  into  his  seat 
by  Cimber,  while  Casca  stabbed  him  in  the  side,  but 
inflicted  only  a  slight  wound.  Then  they  all  assailed 
him  with  drawn  daggers. 

Caesar  kept  them  off  for  a  brief  time  by  winding 
his  gown  as  a  shield  round  his  left  arm,  and  using 
his  sharp  writing  style  for  a  weapon.  But  when  he 
saw  Brutus  approach  prepared  to  strike  he  ex- 
claimed in  deep  sorrow  and  reproach,  "  Et  tu,  Brute  /" 
(Thou  too,  Brutus !)  and  covering  his  face  with  his 
gown,  he  ceased  to  resist.  Their  daggers  pierced  his 
body  till  he  had  received  twenty-three  wounds,  when 
he  fell  dead  at  the  base  of  the  statue  of  Pompey, 
which  looked  silently  down  on  the  slaughter  of  his 
great  and  successful  rival. 

What  followed  this  base  and  fruitless  deed  may  b« 


224  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

briefly  told.  The  senators  not  in  the  plot  rose  in 
alarm  and  fled  from  the  house.  When  Brutus  turned 
to  seek  to  justify  his  deed  only  empty  benches  re- 
mained. Then  the  assassins  hurried  to  the  Forum, 
to  tell  the  people  that  they  had  freed  Eome  from  a 
despot.  But  the  people  were  hostile,  and  the  words 
of  Brutus  fell  on  unfriendly  ears. 

Marc  Antony  followed,  and  delivered  a  telling 
oration,  which  Shakespeare  has  magnificently  para- 
phrased. He  showed  the  mob  a  waxen  image  of 
Caesar's  body,  pierced  with  wounds,  and  the  garment 
rent  by  murderous  blades.  His  words  wrought  his 
hearers  to  fury.  They  tore  up  benches,  tables,  and 
everything  on  which  they  could  lay  their  hands,  for 
a  funeral  pile,  placed  on  it  the  corpse,  and  set  it  on 
fire.  Then,  seizing  blazing  embers  from  the  pile, 
they  rushed  in  quest  of  vengeance  to  the  houses  of 
the  conspirators.  They  were  too  late  ;  all  had  fled. 
The  will  of  the  dictator,  in  which  he  had  made  a 
large  donation  to  every  citizen  of  Eome,  added  to 
the  popular  fury,  and  a  frenzy  of  vengeance  took 
possession  of  the  people  of  Rome. 

We  must  give  the  sequel  of  this  murderous  deed 
in  a  few  words.  Marc  Antony  was  now  master  of 
Rome.  He  increased  his  power  by  pretending 
moderation,  and  having  a  law  passed  to  abolish  the 
dictatorship  forever.  But  there  were  other  actors 
on  the  scene.  Octavius,  whom  Caesar's  will  had  named 
as  his  heir,  took  quick  steps  to  gain  his  heritage. 
Antony  had  taken  possession  of  Caesar's  wealth,  but 
Octavius  managed  to  raise  money  enough  to  pay 
his  uncle's  legacy  to  the  citizens  of  Rome.  A  third 


THE   ASSASSINATION   OP   C^SAR.  225 

man  of  power  was  Lepidus,  who  commanded  an 
army  near  Borne,  and  was  prepared  to  take  part  in 
the  course  of  events. 

Octavius  was  still  only  a  boy,  not  yet  twenty 
years  of  age.  But  he  was  shrewd  and  ambitious, 
and  soon  succeeded  in  having  himself  elected  consul 
and  put  at  the  head  of  a  large  army.  Cicero  aided 
him  with  a  series  of  orations  directed  against 
Antony,  which  were  so  keen  and  bitter,  and  had 
such  an  effect  upon  the  people,  that  Antony  was  de- 
clared a  public  enemy.  Octavius  marched  to  meet 
him  and  Lepidus,  who  were  marching  southward 
with  another  large  army. 

Instead  of  fighting,  however,  the  three  leaders 
met  in  secret  conclave,  and  agreed  to  divide  the 
power  in  Rome  between  them.  This  compact  is 
known  as  the  Second  Triumvirate.  Its  members 
followed  the  example  of  Marius  and  Sulla,  not  that 
of  Caesar,  and  resolved  to  extirpate  their  enemies. 
Each  of  them  gave  up  personal  friends  to  the  ven- 
geance of  the  others.  Of  their  victims  the  most 
famous  was  Cicero,  who  had  delivered  his  orations 
against  Antony  in  aid  of  Octavius.  The  ambitious 

tt 

boy  was  base  enough  to  yield  his  friend  to  the  ven- 
geance of  the  incensed  Antony.  No  less  than  three 
hundred  senators  and  two  thousand  knights  fell 
victims  to  this  new  proscription,  which  while  it 
lasted  made  a  reign  of  terror  in  Eome. 

Brutus  and  Cassius  had  meanwhile  made  them- 
selves masters  of  Greece  and  the  eastern  provinces 
of  Rome,  and  were  ready  to  meet  the  forces  of  the 
Triumvirate  in  the  field.     The  decisive  battle  was 
u.— p 


226  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

fought  on  the  field  of  Philippi  in  Northern  Greece. 
The  division  of  Cassius  was  defeated,  and  he  killed 
himself  in  despair.  Twenty  days  afterwards  another 
battle  was  fought  on  the  same  field,  in  which  Brutus 
was  defeated,  and  likewise  put  an  end  to  his  life. 
The  triumvirs  were  undisputed  lords  of  Rome.  The 
imperial  rule  of  Caesar  had  lasted  but  a  few  months, 
and  ended  with  his  life.  But  with  Octavius  began  an 
imperial  era  which  lasted  till  the  end  of  the  dominion 
of  Rome. 


ANTONY  AND   CLEOPATRA. 

THE  battles  of  Philippi  and  the  death  of  Brutus 
and  Cassius  put  an  end  to  the  republican  party  to 
whom  Caesar  owed  his  death.  The  whole  realm  was 
handed  over  to  the  imperial  Triumvirate,  who  now 
made  a  new  division  of  the  vast  Eoman  world. 
Antony  took  as  his  share  all  the  mighty  realm  of 
the  East ;  Octavius  all  the  West.  To  Lepidus,  whom 
his  powerful  confederates  did  not  take  the  trouble  to 
consult,  only  Africa  was  left. 

The  after-career  of  Antony  was  a  curious  and  im- 
pressive  one.  He  loved  a  bewitching  Egyptian  queen, 
and  for  a  false  love  lost  the  vast  dominion  he  had  won. 
The  story  is  one  of  the  most  romantic  and  popular 
of  all  that  have  come  to  us  from  the  past.  It  has 
been  told  in  detail  by  Plutarch  and  richly  dramatized 
by  Shakespeare.  We  give  it  here  in  brief  epitome. 

Fourteen  years  previously  Antony  had  visited 
Alexandria,  and  had  there  seen  the  youthful  Cleo- 
patra, then  a  girl  of  fifteen,  but  already  so  beautiful 
and  attractive  that  the  susceptible  Roman  was  deeply 
smitten  with  her  charms.  Later  she  had  charmed 
Caesar,  and  now  when  the  lord  of  the  East  set  out 
on  a  tour  of  his  new  dominions,  the  love  queen  of 
Egypt  left  her  capital  for  Cilicia  with  the  purpose 
of  making  him  her  captive. 

227 


228  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

It  was  midsummer  of  the  year  41  B.C.  when 
Antony  arrived  at  Tarsus,  on  the  river  Cydnus. 
Up  this  stream  to  visit  him  came,  in  more  than 
Oriental  pomp,  the  beautiful  Egyptian  queen.  The 
galley  that  bore  her  was  gorgeous  beyond  compari- 
son. Its  sails  were  of  Tyrian  purple ;  silver  oars 
fretted  the  yielding  wave,  while  music  timed  their 
rise  and  fall;  the  poop  glittered  with  burnished 
gold ;  rich  perfumes  filled  the  air  with  fragrance. 
Here,  on  a  splendid  couch,  under  a  spangled  canopy, 
reclined  Cleopatra,  attired  as  Venus,  and  surrounded 
by  attendants  dressed  as  Graces  and  Cupids.  Beau- 
tiful slaves  moved  oars  and  ropes,  and  the  whole 
array  was  one  of  wondrous  charm.  We  cannot  do 
better  than  quote  Shakespeare's  vivid  description  of 
this  unequalled  spectacle : 

"  The  barge  she  sat  in,  like  a  burnished  throne, 
Burned  on  the  water ;  the  poop  was  beaten  gold  ; 
Purple  the  sails,  and  so  perfumed  that 
The  winds  were  love-sick  with  them  ;  the  oars  were  silver, 
Which  to  the  tune  of  flutes  kept  stroke,  and  made 
The  water  that  they  beat  to  follow  faster, 
As  amorous  of  their  strokes.     For  her  own  person, 
It  beggared  all  description ;  she  did  lie 
In  her  pavilion — cloth-of-gold  of  tissue — 
Outpicturing  that  Venus  where  we  see 
The  fancy  outwork  nature ;  on  each  side  her 
Stood  pretty  dimpled  boys,  like  smiling  Cupids, 
With  divers-colored  fans,  whose  wind  did  seem 
To  glow  the  delicate  cheeks  which  they  did  cool." 

The  people  of  Tarsus  ran  in  crowds  to  gaze  on 
this  wondrous  spectacle,  leaving  Antony  alone  in  the 


ANTONY   AND   CLEOPATRA.  229 

Forum.  At  the  request  of  Cleopatra  he  came  also, 
and  was  so  captivated  at  sight  that  he  became  her 
slave.  He  forgot  Rome,  forgot  his  wife  Fulvia,  for- 
got honor  and  dignity,  through  his  wild  passion  for 
this  Egyptian  sorceress.  Following  her  to  Alexan- 
dria, he  laid  aside  his  Eoman  garb  for  the  Oriental 
costume  of  the  Egyptian  court,  gave  way  to  all 
Cleopatra's  pleasure-loving  caprices,  and  lived  in  a 
perpetual  round  of  orgies  and  festivities,  heedless  of 
honor  and  duty,  and  caring  for  naught  but  love  and 
sensual  enjoyment. 

Intoxicated  with  pleasure,  Antony  did  not  know 
what  risk  he  ran.  Shortly  before  Octavius  had  been 
spoken  of  as  a  boy,  whom  it  would  be  easy  to  manage 
and  control.  He  was  feeble  and  sickly, — so  much 
so,  indeed,  that  just  at  this  time  his  death  was  re- 
ported in  Rome.  But  the  "boy"  was  ambitious, 
astute,  and  far-seeing,  and  Mare  Antony  was  de- 
scending to  ruin  with  every  step  he  took  in  his 
career  of  folly  and  profligacy. 

The  history  of  the  succeeding  years  is  long,  but 
must  here  be  made  short.  The  two  lords  of  Rome 
were  changed  from  friends  to  enemies  by  the  act 
of  Fulvia,  the  wife  of  Antony.  Octavius  had  mar- 
ried her  daughter  Claudia,  and  now  divorced  her. 
Anger  at  this,  and  a  hope  of  winning  Antony  from 
the  seductions  of  the  Egyptian  queen,  caused  her 
to  organize  a  formidable  revolt  against  Octavius. 
She  succeeded  in  raising  a  large  army,  but  Antony 
was  still  too  absorbed  in  Cleopatra  to  come  to  her 
aid,  and  Agrippa,  the  able  general  of  Octavius,  soon 
put  down  the  revolt. 

-20 


230  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Then,  when  it  was  too  late  to  help  her,  Antony 
awoke  from  his  lethargy,  and  sailed  to  battle  with 
Octavius.  He  besieged  Brundusium.  But  Fulvia 
had  died,  the  soldiers  had  no  heart  for  civil  war,  and 
the  great  rivals  again  made  peace.  Antony  married 
Octavia,  the  sister  of  Octavius,  they  divided  the 
Roman  world  between  them  as  before,  and  Rome 
was  made  happy  by  a  grand  round  of  games  and 
festivities. 

For  three  years  Antony  remained  true  to  his  new 
wife,  and  aided  Octavius  in  putting  down  the  foes 
of  Rome.  Then,  during  a  campaign  in  Syria,  his 
old  passion  for  the  fascinating  Egyptian  returned, 
he  called  Cleopatra  to  him,  dallied  with  her  instead 
of  prosecuting  his  march,  and  in  the  end  was  forced 
to  retreat  in  haste  from  the  barbarian  foe. 

For  three  years  now  Antony  was  the  willing  slave 
of  the  enchanting  queen.  The  courage  and  stoical 
endurance  of  the  soldier  vanished,  and  were  replaced 
by  the  soft  indulgence  of  the  voluptuary.  The  rigid 
discipline  of  the  camp  was  exchanged  for  the  idle 
and  often  childish  amusements  of  the  Oriental  court. 
Cleopatra  enchained  him  with  an  endless  round  of 
pleasures  and  profligacies.  Now,  while  in  a  fishing- 
boat  on  the  Nile,  the  queen  amused  him  by  having 
salted  fish  fixed  by  divers  on  his  hook,  which  he 
drew  up  amid  the  laughter  of  the  party.  Again  she 
wagered  that  she  would  consume  ten  million  ses- 
terces at  a  meal,  and  won  her  wager  by  drinking 
vinegar  in  which  she  had  dissolved  a  priceless  pearl. 
All  the  enjoyments  that  the  fancy  of  the  cunning 
enchantress  could  devise  were  spread  around  him, 


ANTONY  AND   CLEOPATRA.  231 

and  he  let  the  world  roll  unheeded  by  while  he 
yielded  to  their  alluring  charm. 

Antony  posed  at  festive  tables  in  the  character  of 
the  god  Osiris,  while  Cleopatra  played  the  rSle  of 
Isis.  He  issued  coins  which  bore  her  head  and  his. 
He  gave  away  kingdoms  and  principalities  in  the 
East  to  please  her  fancy.  It  was  her  hope  and  aim 
to  lead  her  yielding  lover  to  the  conquest  of  Eome, 
and  to  rule  as  empress  of  that  imperial  city. 

But  the  madness  of  Antony  led  to  destruction,  not 
empire.  The  story  of  his  doings  was  repeated  at 
Rome,  where  the  voluptuary  lost  credit  as  Octavius 
gained  it.  Antony's  friends  urged  him  to  dismiss 
Cleopatra  and  fight  for  the  empire.  Instead  of  this 
the  infatuated  madman  divorced  Octavia  and  clung 
to  the  Egyptian  queen. 

This  act  led  to  an  open  rupture.  Octavius,  by 
authority  of  the  senate,  declared  war,  not  against 
Antony,  but  against  Cleopatra.  Antony  was  at 
length  roused.  He  gathered  an  army  in  haste, 
passed  to  Ephesus  and  Athens,  and  everywhere 
levied  men  and  collected  ships.  A  last  and  great 
struggle  for  the  supreme  headship  of  the  Roman 
world  was  at  hand. 

Octavius  was  not  skilled  in  war,  but  he  had  in 
Agrippa  one  of  the  ablest  of  ancient  generals,  and 
was  wise  enough  to  trust  all  warlike  operations  to 
him.  Antony  had  strongly  fortified  himself  at  Ac- 
tium,  on  the  west  coast  of  Greece,  while  the  strong 
fleet  he  had  gathered  lay  in  its  spacious  bay.  Here 
took  place  one  of  the  decisive  battles  of  the  world's 
history. 


232  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

Antony  had  made  the  fatal  mistake  of  bringing 
Cleopatra  with  him.  Under  her  advice  he  played 
the  part  of  a  poltroon  instead  of  a  soldier.  His 
chief  officers,  disgusted  by  his  fascination,  deserted 
him  in  numbers,  and,  yielding  to  her  urgent  fears, 
he  resolved  to  fly  with  the  fleet  and  abandon  the 
army. 

In  this  act  of  folly  he  failed.  A  strong  gale  from 
the  south  kept  the  fleet  for  four  days  in  the  harbor. 
Then  the  ships  of  Octavius  came  up,  and  the  two 
fleets  joined  battle  off  the  headland  of  Actium. 

The  ships  of  Antony  were  much  larger  and  more 
powerful  than  those  of  Octavius.  Little  impression 
was  made  on  them  by  the  light  Italian  vessels,  and 
had  Antony  been  a  soldier  still,  or  Cleopatra  pos- 
sessed as  much  courage  as  guile,  the  victory  might 
well  have  been  theirs.  But  battle  was  no  place  for 
the  pleasure-loving  queen.  Filled  with  terror,  she 
took  advantage  of  the  first  wind  that  came,  and 
sailed  hastily  away,  followed  by  sixty  Egyptian 
ships. 

The  moment  Antony  discovered  her  flight  he 
gave  up  the  world  for  love.  Springing  from  his 
ship-of-war  into  a  light  galley,  he  hastened  in  wild 
pursuit  after  his  flying  mistress.  Overtaking  her 
vessel,  he  went  on  board,  but  seated  himself  in  mo- 
rose misery  at  a  distance,  and  would  have  nothing 
to  do  with  her.  Ruin  and  despair  were  now  his 
mistresses. 

Their  commander  fled,  the  ships  fought  on,  and 
yielded  not  till  the  greater  part  of  them  were  in 
flames.  Before  night  they  were  all  destroyed,  and 


ANTONY  AND   CLEOPATRA.  233 

with  them  perished  most  of  those  on  board,  while 
all  the  treasure  was  lost.  When  the  army  heard  of 
Antony's  desertion  the  legions  went  over  to  the 
conqueror.  That  brief  sea-fight  had  ended  the  war. 

For  a  year  Octavius  did  not  trouble  his  rival. 
He  spent  the  time  in  cementing  his  power  in  Greece 
and  Asia  Minor.  Cleopatra  tried  her  fascinations 
on  him,  as  she  had  on  Caesar  and  Antony,  but  in 
vain.  She  sought  to  fly  to  some  place  beyond  the 
reach  of  Home,  but  Arabs  destroyed  her  ships.  At 
length  Octavius  came.  Antony  made  some  show  of 
hostility,  but  Cleopatra  betrayed  the  fleet  to  his  rival 
and  all  resistance  ended.  Octavius  entered  the  open 
gates  of  Alexandria  as  a  conqueror. 

The  queen  shut  herself  up  in  a  building  which  she 
had  erected  as  a  mausoleum.  It  had  no  door,  being 
built  to  receive  her  body  after  death,  and  word  was 
sent  out  that  she  was  already  dead. 

When  these  false  tidings  were  brought  to  Antony 
all  his  anger  against  the  fair  traitress  was  replaced 
by  a  flood  of  his  old  tenderness.  In  despair  he 
stabbed  himself,  bidding  his  attendants  to  lay  his 
body  beside  that  of  Cleopatra. 

Still  living,  he  was  borne  to  the  queen's  retreat, 
where,  moved  by  pity,  she  had  him  drawn  up  by 
cords  into  an  upper  window.  Here  she  threw  her- 
self in  agony  on  his  body,  bathed  his  face  with  her 
tears,  and  continued  to  bemoan  his  fate  until  he  was 
dead. 

She  afterwards  consented  to  receive  Octavius. 
He  spoke  her  fairly,  but  she  was  wise  enough  to  see 
that  all  her  charms  were  lost  on  him,  and  that  he 
20* 


234  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

proposed  to  degrade  her  by  making  her  walk  as  a 
captive  in  his  triumph. 

With  a  cunning  greater  than  his  own,  Cleopatra 
promised  to  submit.  She  had  no  apparent  means  of 
taking  her  life  in  the  cell,  every  dangerous  weapon 
was  removed  by  his  orders,  and  he  left  her,  as  he 
supposed,  a  safe  victim  of  his  wiles. 

He  did  not  know  Cleopatra.  When  his  messen- 
gers returned,  at  the  hour  fixed,  to  conduct  her 
away,  they  found  only  the  dead  body  of  Cleopatra 
stretched  upon  her  couch,  and  by  her  side  her  two 
faithful  attendants,  Iris  and  Charmion.  It  is  said 
that  she  died  from  the  bite  of  an  asp,  a  venomous 
Egyptian  serpent,  which  had  been  secretly  conveyed 
to  her  concealed  in  a  basket  of  fruit ;  but  this  story 
remains  unconfirmed. 

Plutarch  tells  the  story  thus :  "  But  when  they 
opened  the  doors  they  found  Cleopatra  stark  dead, 
laid  upon  a  bed  of  gold,  attired  and  arrayed  in  her 
royal  robes,  and  one  of  her  two  women,  who  was 
called  Iris,  dead  at  her  feet,  and  the  other  woman 
(called  Charmion)  half  dead,  and  trembling,  trimming 
the  diadem  which  Cleopatra  wore  upon  her  head. 

"  One  of  the  soldiers,  seeing  her,  angrily  said  to 
her,  '  Is  that  well  done,  Charmion  ?'  '  Very  well,' 
said  she  again,  '  and  meet  for  a  princess  descended 
from  the  race  of  so  many  noble  kings.'  She  said  no 
more,  but  fell  down  dead,  hard  by  the  bed. 

"  Now  Caesar,  though  he  was  marvellous  sorry  for 
the  death  of  Cleopatra,  yet  he  wondered  at  her  noble 
mind  and  courage,  and  therefore  commanded  that 
she  should  be  nobly  buried  and  laid  by  Antony." 


ANTONY   AND   CLEOPATRA.  235 

Thus  ends  the  story  of  these  two  famous  lovers 
of  old.  Octavius,  afterwards  known  as  Csesar  Augus- 
tus, reigned  sole  emperor  of  Eome,  and  the  republic 
was  at  an  end.  He  was  not  formally  proclaimed  em- 
peror, but  liberty  and  independence  were  thereafter 
forgotten  words  in  Rome.  He  ended  the  old  era  of 
Eoman  history  by  closing  the  Temple  of  Janus,  for 
the  third  time  since  it  was  built,  and  by  freely  for- 
giving all  the  friends  of  Antony.  He  had  nothing 
to  fear  and  had  no  thirst  for  blood  and  misery. 
Base  as  he  had  shown  himself  in  his  youth,  his  reign 
was  a  noble  one,  and  during  it  Eome  reached  its 
highest  level  of  literary  and  military  glory. 


AN  IMPERIAL  MONSTER. 

A  BEING,  half  monster,  half  madman,  had  come 
to  empire  in  Eome.  This  was  Caius  Csesar,  great- 
grandson  of  Augustus,  who  in  his  short  career  aa 
emperor  displayed  a  malignant  cruelty  unsurpassed 
by  the  worst  of  Roman  emperors,  and  a  mad  folly 
unequalled  by  any.  The  only  conceivable  excuse  for 
him  is  mental  disease;  but  insanity  which  takes  the 
form  of  thirst  for  blood,  and  is  combined  with  un- 
limited power,  is  a  spectacle  to  make  the  very  gods 
weep.  "We  describe  his  career  as  the  most  exagger- 
ated instance  on  record  of  mingled  folly  and  malig- 
nity. 

Brought  up  in  the  camp,  he  was  christened  by  the 
soldiers  Caligula,  from  the  soldier's  boots  (caligce) 
which  he  wore.  By  shrewd  dissimulation  he  pre- 
served his  life  through  the  reign  of  Tiberius,  and 
was  left  heir  to  the  throne  along  with  the  emperor's 
grandson.  But,  deceiving  the  senate  by  his  pre- 
tended moderation,  he  was  appointed  by  that  body 
sole  emperor. 

They  little  knew  what  they  did.     Tiberius,  who 

appears  to  have  read  him  truly,  spoke  of  educating 

him  "for  the  destruction  of  the  Roman  people,"  and 

Caligula  seemed  eager  to  make  these  words  good. 

236 


AN   IMPERIAL   MONSTER.  237 

At  first,  indeed,  he  seemed  generous  and  merciful, 
mingling  this  affectation  with  a  savage  profligacy 
and  voluptuousness.  Illness,  however,  apparently 
affected  his  brain  or  destroyed  what  little  moral 
nature  he  possessed,  and  he  quickly  embarked  on  a 
career  of  frightful  excess  and  barbarity. 

The  great  wealth  left  by  Tiberius — over  twenty- 
five  million  dollars — was  expended  by  him  in  a 
single  year,  and  to  gain  new  funds  he  taxed  and 
robbed  his  subjects  to  an  incredible  extent.  One  of 
his  methods  of  finance  was  to  force  wealthy  citizens 
to  gamble  with  him  for  enormous  sums,  and  when 
they  lost  their  all  (they  dared  not  win),  he  would 
make  their  lives  the  stake  and  bid  their  friends  re- 
deem them.  In  addition  to  this  open  robbery  of 
the  rich,  taxes  of  all  sorts  were  laid  and  unlimited 
oppressions  enforced.  The  new  edicts  of  the  em- 
peror were  written  so  small  and  posted  so  high  as 
to  be  unreadable,  yet  no  excuse  of  ignorance  of  the 
law  was  admitted  in  extenuation  of  a  fault. 

The  funds  obtained  by  such  oppressive  means  were 
lavished  on  the  most  extravagant  follies.  We  are 
told  of  loaves  of  solid  gold  set  before  his  guests,  and 
the  prows  of  galleys  adorned  with  diamonds.  His 
favorite  horse  was  kept  in  an  ivory  stable  and  fed 
from  a  golden  manger,  and  when  invited  to  a  ban- 
quet at  his  own  table  was  regaled  with  gilded  oats, 
served  in  a  golden  basin  of  exquisite  workmanship. 

In  addition  to  these  domestic  follies,  he  built  villas 
and  laid  out  gardens  without  regard  to  cost;  and, 
that  be  might  vie  with  Xerxes,  he  constructed  a 
bridge  of  ships  three  miles  long,  from  Baise  to 


238  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Puteoli,  on  which  he  built  houses  and  planted  trees. 
This  madness  was  concluded  by  throwing  a  great 
many  of  his  guests  from  the  bridge  into  the  sea,  and 
by  driving  recklessly  with  his  war-galley  through 
the  throng  of  boats  that  had  gathered  to  witness  the 
spectacle. 

These  cruelties  were  mild  compared  with  his  more 
deliberate  ones.  Eome  was  filled  with  executions, 
the  estates  of  his  victims  being  confiscated;  and  it 
was  his  choice  delight  to  have  these  victims  tortured 
and  slain  in  his  presence  while  at  dinner,  the  officers 
being  bidden  to  protract  their  sufferings,  that  they 
might  "feel  themselves  die."  On  one  occasion  he 
expressed  the  mad  wish  that  all  the  Eoman  people 
had  but  one  neck,  that  he  might  strike  it  off"  at  a 
blow. 

Priding  himself  on  the  indifference  with  which  he 
could  gaze  on  human  torture,  it  was  one  of  his  en- 
joyments to  witness  criminals  torn  to  pieces  by  wild 
beasts,  and  if  criminals  proved  scarce  he  did  not 
hesitate  to  order  some  of  the  spectators  to  be  thrown 
into  the  arena.  In  the  same  manner,  if  a  full  supply 
of  gladiators  was  wanting,  he  would  command  Ro- 
man knights  to  battle  in  the  arena,  taking  delight 
in  the  fact  that  this  was  viewed  as  an  infamous  pur- 
suit. He  kept  two  lists  containing  names  of  knights 
and  senators  whom  he  intended  to  put  to  death,  and 
these  contained  the  majority  of  both  those  bodies  of 
Eoman  patricians.  He  is  said  to  have  put  one  man 
to  death  for  being  better  dressed  than  himself,  and 
another  for  being  better  looking. 

He  married  more  wives  than  he  had  years  of  em- 


AN   IMPERIAL   MONSTER.  239 

pire;  but  when  one  of  these  wives,  Drusilla  by  name., 
died,  he  affected  the  bitterest  grief,  exiling  himgeli 
to  Sicily,  and  letting  his  beard  and  hair  grow  ink 
wild  disorder.  On  his  return  to  Eome  his  sub 
jects  found  themselves  in  a  dangerous  quandary. 
Those  who  made  a  show  of  sadness  were  declared 
guilty  of  disrespect  to  the  memory  of  the  queen, 
who  had  been  translated  to  the  joys  of  heaven. 
Those  who  seemed  glad  were  adjudged  equally 
guilty  for  not  mourning  her  loss.  And  those  who 
showed  neither  joy  nor  sorrow  were  accused  of 
criminal  indifference  to  his  feelings.  One  man,  who 
sold  warm  water  in  the  streets,  was  sentenced  to 
death  for  daring  to  pursue  his  occupation  on  so 
solemn  an  occasion. 

At  a  loss,  as  it  would  appear,  in  what  madness 
next  to  indulge,  Caligula  finally  not  only  declared 
himself  a  god,  but  erected  a  temple  to  his  own 
divinity,  and  created  a  college  of  priests  to  serve  at 
his  altar.  Among  these  were  some  of  the  first  sen- 
ators of  Eome,  who  vied  with  each  other  in  adula- 
tion to  this  impious  wretch.  Not  content  with  these, 
he  made  his  wife  a  priest,  then  his  horse,  and  at 
length  became  a  priest  to  himself.  He  played  with 
the  dignities  of  the  realm  in  the  same  manner  as 
with  its  religion,  raised  the  ministers  of  his  lusts  to 
the  highest  offices,  and  finally  went  so  far  as  to  make 
his  horse  a  consul  of  Eome. 

In  his  position  as  a  deity  he  pretended  to  be  equal 
to  and  on  friendly  terms  with  Jupiter,  and  would 
whisper  in  the  ears  of  his  statue  as  if  they  were  in 
familiar  intercourse.  He  had  a  machine  constructed 


2-fO  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

to  vie  with  Jupiter's  thunder,  and  during  the  light- 
ning of  a  storm  would  challenge  the  god  to  mortal 
combat  by  hurling  stones  into  the  air. 

This  succession  of  mad  frolics  and  ruthless  cruel- 
ties should,  it  would  seem,  have  satisfied  even  a  Calig- 
ula, but  he  managed  to  overtop  them  all  by  a  supreme 
piece  of  folly,  which  stands  alone  among  human 
freaks.  Hitherto  his  doings  had  been  those  of 
peace;  he  now  resolved  to  gain  glory  in  war,  and 
show  the  Romans  what  a  man  of  soldierly  mettle 
they  had  in  their  emperor.  There  were  no  particu- 
lar wars  then  afoot,  but  he  would  make  one,  and 
resolved  on  an  invasion  of  Germany,  whose  people 
were  at  that  time  quiet  subjects  or  allies  of  Borne. 

To  decide  with  him  was  to  act.  The  army  was 
ordered  to  prepare  with  the  utmost  haste,  and  was 
driven  so  fiercely  that  all  was  in  confusion,  the  roads 
everywhere  being  blocked  up  with  hurrying  troops 
and  great  convoys  of  provisions,  all  converging 
rapidly  on  the  line  of  march.  Not  waiting  their 
arrival,  he  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  first  legions 
gathered,  and  set  out  on  the  march  with  such  furi- 
ous speed  that  the  legionaries  were  utterly  exhausted 
with  fatigue.  Then,  suddenly  changing  his  mood, 
he  affected  the  slow  progress  and  military  pomp  of 
an  Oriental  king. 

On  reaching  the  borders  of  Germany  the  emperor 
found  no  foes  and  showed  no  fancy  for  fighting. 
Concealing  some  boys  in  a  wood,  he  got  up  a  mock 
battle  with  them,  and  at  its  end  congratulated  the 
troops  on  their  valor  and  felicitated  himself  on  his 
success.  Next,  the  British  island  being  still  under 


AN   IMPERIAL   MONSTER.  241 

process  of  conquest,  he  marched  his  army,  two  hun- 
dred thousand  strong,  to  the  sea-shore  of  Gaul,  and 
drew  them  up  in  line  of  battle.  The  legionaries 
stolidly  obeyed,  wondering  in  their  stern  souls  what 
new  madness  the  emperor  had  in  mind. 

They  were  soon  to  know.  He  bade  them  to  fill 
their  helmets  with  sea-shells,  "the  spoils  of  the  ocean 
due  to  the  Capitol  and  the  palace."  Then  he  dis- 
tributed large  sums  of  money  among  the  troops, 
giving  a  reward  for  valor  to  each,  and  bidding  them 
"  henceforth  to  be  happy  and  rich." 

This  was  all  well  for  the  army,  but  the  people  of 
Rome  must  be  impressed  with  the  glory  and  victori- 
ous success  of  their  emperor.  Such  a  career  was 
worthy  a  triumph ;  and  to  the  German  hostages  and 
criminals,  destined  to  figure  in  the  procession  to  the 
Capitol,  he  added  a  number  of  tall  and  martial 
Gauls,  chosen  without  regard  to  rank  or  condition, 
whom  he  ordered  to  learn  German,  that  they  might 
pass  for  German  captives. 

And  now,  his  military  expedition  having  ended 
without  shedding  the  blood  of  a  foe,  Caligula's  in- 
sane thirst  for  blood  arose,  and  he  determined  to 
glut  it  out  of  the  ranks  of  his  own  army.  There 
were  in  it  some  regiments  which  had  mutinied 
against  his  father  on  the  death  of  Augustus.  He 
ordered  these  to  be  slaughtered  for  their  crime. 
Some  of  his  higher  officers  representing  to  him  the 
danger  of  such  a  proceeding,  he  changed  his  mind, 
and  gave  orders  that  these  legions  should  be  deci- 
mated. But  the  whole  army  showed  such  symp- 
toms of  discontent  with  this  cruel  order  that  Calig- 
II.— L  q  21 


242  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

ula  was  seized  with  consternation,  and  fled  in  a 
panic  to  Kome. 

On  reaching  the  city  the  senate  proved  bold 
enough  to  vote  him  an  ovation  instead  of  the 
triumph  on  which  he  had  set  his  mind.  Incensed  at 
this,  he  met  the  advances  of  the  patricians  with 
stinging  insults,  and  perhaps  determined  in  his  mind 
to  be  deeply  revenged  for  this  premeditated  slight. 

Whatever  he  had  in  view,  he  did  not  live  much 
longer  to  afflict  mankind.  Four  months  more  brought 
him  to  the  end  of  his  flagitious  career.  There  was  a 
brave  soldier  of  the  palace  guard,  Cassius  Chserea 
by  name,  who  happened  to  have  a  weak  voice,  and 
whom  Caligula  frequently  insulted  in  public  for  this 
fault  of  nature.  These  insults  in  time  grew  heavier 
and  viler  than  the  veteran  could  bear,  and  he  or- 
ganized a  conspiracy  with  a  few  others  against  the 
emperor's  life.  Meeting  him  without  guards,  the 
conspirators  assailed  him  with  their  daggers  and 
put  an  end  to  his  base  life. 

Thus  died,  after  twenty-nine  years  of  life  and  four 
years  of  power,  one  of  the  vilest,  cruellest,  and  mad- 
dest of  the  imperial  demons  who  so  long  made  Eome 
a  slaughter-house  and  an  abomination  among  the 
nations. 


THE  MURDER  OF  AN  EMPRESS. 

NERO  was  lord  of  Eome.  Chance  had  placed  a 
weak  and  immoral  boy  in  unlimited  control  of  the 
greatest  of  nations.  Utterly  destitute  of  principle, 
he  gradually  descended  into  the  deepest  vice  and 
profligacy,  which  was  soon  succeeded  by  the  basest 
cruelty  and  treachery.  And  one  of  the  first  victims 
of  his  treachery  was  bis  own  mother,  who  had  mur- 
dered her  husband,  the  Emperor  Claudius,  to  place 
him  on  the  throne,  and  had  now  committed  the 
deeper  fault  of  attempting  to  control  her  worthless 
and  faithless  son. 

She  had  threatened  to  replace  him  on  the  throne 
with  his  half-brother  Britannicus,  and  Nero  had  es- 
caped this  difficulty  by  poisoning  Britannicus.  She 
then  opposed  his  vicious  passions,  and  made  a  bitter 
foe  of  his  mistress  Poppsea,  who  by  every  artifice  in- 
censed the  weak-minded  emperor  against  his  mother, 
representing  her  as  the  only  obstacle  to  his  full  en- 
joyment of  power  and  pleasure. 

At  length  the  detestable  son  was  wrought  up  to 
the  resolution  of  murdering  her  to  whom  he  owed 
his  life.  But  how  ?  He  was  too  cowardly  and  irreso- 
lute to  take  open  means.  Should  he  remove  her  by 
poison  or  the  poignard?  The  first  was  doubtful. 

243 


244  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

Agrippina  was  too  practised  in  guilt,  too  accustomed 
to  vile  deeds,  to  be  easily  deceived,  and  had,  more- 
over, by  taking  poisons,  hardened  her  frame  against 
their  effect.  Nor  could  she  be  killed  by  the  knife 
and  the  murder  concealed.  The  murder-seeking 
wretch,  who  had  no  plan,  and  no  stronger  person 
than  himself  in  whom  he  could  confide,  was  at  a 
loss  how  to  carry  out  his  wicked  purpose. 

At  this  juncture  his  tutor  Anicetus  came  to  his 
aid.  This  villain,  who  bitterly  hated  Agrippina,  was 
now  in  command  of  the  fleet  that  lay  at  Misenum. 
He  proposed  to  Nero  to  have  a  vessel  built  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  might  give  way  in  the  open  sea,  and 
plunge  to  the  bottom  with  all  not  prepared  to  escape. 
If  Agrippina  could  be  lured  on  board  such  a  vessel, 
her  drowning  would  seem  one  of  the  natural  disas- 
ters of  the  open  sea. 

This  suggestion  filled  with  joy  the  mind  of  the 
unnatural  son.  The  court  was  then  at  Baise,  cele- 
brating the  festival  called  the  Quinquatria.  Agrip- 
pina was  invited  to  attend,  and  Nero,  pretending  a 
desire  for  reconciliation,  went  to  the  sea-shore  to 
meet  her  on  her  arrival,  embraced  her  tenderly,  and 
conducted  her  to  a  villa  in  a  pleasant  situation, 
looking  out  on  a  charming  bay  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean. 

On  the  waters  of  the  bay  floated  a  number  of  ves- 
sels, among  which  was  one  superbly  decorated,  being 
prepared,  as  she  was  told,  in  her  honor  as  the  em- 
peror's mother.  This  was  intended  to  convey  her  to 
Baise,  where  a  banquef  was  to  be  given  to  her  that 
evening. 


THE   MURDER   OF  AN    EMPRESS.  245 

Agrippina  was  fond  of  sailing.  She  had  fre- 
quently joined  coasting  parties  and  made  pleasure 
trips  of  her  own.  But  for  some  reason,  perhaps 
through  suspicion  of  Nero's  dark  project,  she  now 
took  a  carriage  in  preference,  and  arrived  safely  at 
Baise,  much  to  the  discomfiture  of  her  worthless  son. 

Nero,  however,  was  cunning  enough  to  conceal  his 
disappointment.  He  gave  her  the  most  gracious  re- 
ception, placed  her  at  table  above  himself,  and  by 
his  affectionate  attentions  and  his  easy  flow  of  talk 
succeeded  in  dispelling  any  suspicions  his  mother 
may  have  entertained. 

The  banquet  was  continued  till  a  late  hour,  and 
when  Agrippina  rose  to  go  Nero  attended  her  to  the 
shore,  where  lay  the  sumptuously  decorated  vessel 
ready  to  convey  her  back  to  her  villa.  Here  he 
lavished  upon  her  marks  of  fond  affection,  clasped 
her  warmly  to  his  bosom,  and  bade  her  adieu  in 
words  of  tender  regret,  disguising  his  fell  purpose 
under  the  utmost  show  of  tenderness. 

Agrippina  went  on  board,  attended  by  only  two 
of  her  train,  one  of  whom,  a  maid  named  Acerronia, 
lay  at  the  foot  of  her  mistress's  couch,  and  gladly 
expressed  her  joy  at  the  loving  reconciliation  which 
she  had  just  perceived. 

The  night  was  calm  and  serene.  The  stars  shone 
with  their  brightest  lustre.  The  sea  extended  with 
an  unruffled  surface.  The  vessel  moved  swiftly,  at 
no  great  distance  from  the  shore,  under  the  regular 
sweep  of  the  rowers'  oars.  Yet  little  way  had  been 
made  when  there  came  a  disastrous  change.  A 
signal  was  given,  and  suddenly  the  deck  over  Agrip- 
21* 


246  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

piua's  cabin  sank  in,  borne  down  by  a  great  weight 
of  lead. 

One  of  the  attendants  of  the  empress  was  crushed 
to  death,  but  the  posts  of  Agrippina's  couch  proved 
strong  enough  to  bear  the  weight,  and  she  and 
Acerronia  escaped  and  made  their  way  hastily  to 
the  deck.  Here  confusion  and  consternation  reigned. 
The  plot  had  failed.  The  vessel  had  not  fallen  to 
pieces  at  once,  as  intended.  Those  who  were  not  in 
the  plot  rushed  wildly  to  and  fro,  hampering,  by 
their  distracted  movements,  the  operations  of  the 
guilty.  These  sought  to  sink  the  vessel  at  once,  but 
in  spite  of  their  efforts  the  ship  sank  but  slowly, 
giving  the  intended  victims  an  opportunity  to  escape. 

Acerronia,  with  instinctive  devotion  to  her  mis- 
tress, or  a  desire  to  save  her  own  life,  cried  out  that 
she  was  Agrippina,  and  pathetically  implored  the 
mariners  to  save  her  life.  She  won  death  instead. 
The  assassins  attacked  her  with  oars  and  other 
weapons,  and  beat  her  down  to  the  sinking  deck. 
Agrippina,  on  the  contrary,  kept  silent,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  a  wound  on  her  shoulder,  remained 
unhurt.  Dashing  into  the  dark  waters  of  the  bay, 
she  swam  towards  the  shore,  and  managed  to  keep 
herself  afloat  till  taken  up  by  a  boat,  in  which  some 
persons  who  had  witnessed  the  accident  from  the 
shore  had  hastily  put  out.  Telling  her  rescuers  who 
she  was,  they  conveyed  her  up  the  bay  to  her  villa. 

Agrippina  had  been  concerned  in  too  many  crimes 
of  her  own  devising  to  be  deceived.  The  treach- 
ery of  her  son  was  too  evident.  Without  touching 
a  rock,  and  in  complete  calm,  the  vessel  had  suddenly 


THE    MURDER    OF   AN    EMPRESS.  247 

broken  down,  as  if  constructed  for  the  purpose.  Her 
own  wound  and  the  murder  of  her  maid  were  fur- 
ther proofs  of  a  preconcerted  plot.  Yet  she  was  too 
shrewd  to  make  her  suspicions  public.  The  plot  had 
failed,  and  she  was  still  alive.  She  at  once  de- 
spatched a  messenger  to  her  son,  saying  that  by  the 
favor  of  the  gods  and  his  good  auspices  she  had 
escaped  shipwreck,  and  that  she  thus  hastened  to 
quiet  his  affectionate  fears.  She  then  retired  to  her 
couch. 

Meanwhile  Nero  waited  impatiently  for  the  news 
of  his  mother's  death.  When  word  was  at  length 
brought  him  that  she  had  escaped,  his  craven  soul 
was  filled  with  terror.  If  this  should  get  abroad ; 
if  she  should  call  on  her  slaves,  on  the  army,  on  the 
senate;  if  the  people  should  learn  of  the  plot  of 
murder,  and  rise  in  riot ;  if  any  of  a  dozen  contin- 
gencies should  happen,  all  might  be  lost. 

The  terrified  emperor  was  in  a  frightful  quandary. 
He  sent  in  all  haste  for  his  advisers,  but  none  of 
them  cared  to  offer  any  suggestions.  At  length  the 
villanous  Anicetus  came  to  his  aid.  While  they 
talked  the  messenger  of  Agrippina  had  arrived,  and 
was  admitted  to  give  his  message  to  the  prince.  As 
he  was  speaking  Anicetus  foxily  let  fall  a  dagger 
between  his  legs.  He  instantly  seized  him,  snatched 
up  the  dagger  and  showed  it  to  the  company,  and 
declared  that  the  wretch  had  been  sent  by  Agrip- 
pina to  assassinate  her  son.  The  guards  were  called 
in,  the  man  was  ordered  to  be  dragged  away  and 
put  in  fetters,  and  the  story  of  the  discovered  plot 
of  Agrippina  was  made  public. 


248  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

"  Death  to  the  murderess !"  cried  Anicetus.  "  Let 
me  hasten  at  once  to  her  punishment." 

Nero  gladly  assented,  and  Anicetus  hurried  from 
the  room,  empowered  to  carry  out  his  murderous 
intent. 

Meanwhile  the  news  of  the  peril  and  escape  of 
the  empress  had  spread  far  and  wide.  A  dreadful 
accident  had  occurred,  it  was  said.  The  people 
rushed  in  numbers  to  the  shore,  crowded  the  piers, 
filled  the  boats,  and  gave  voice  to  a  medley  of  cries 
of  alarm.  The  uproar  was  at  length  allayed  by 
some  men  with  lighted  torches,  who  assured  the 
excited  multitude  that  Agrippina  had  escaped  and 
was  now  safe  in  her  villa. 

While  they  were  speaking  a  body  of  soldiers,  led 
by  Anicetus,  arrived,  and  with  threats  of  violence 
dispersed  the  peasant  throng.  Then,  planting  a 
guard  round  the  mansion,  Anicetus  burst  open  its 
doors,  seized  the  slaves  who  appeared,  and  forced  his 
way  to  the  apartment  of  the  empress. 

Here  Agrippina  waited  in  fear  and  agitation  the 
return  of  her  messenger.  Why  came  he  not  ?  Was 
new  murder  in  contemplation?  She  heard  the 
tumult  and  confusion  on  the  shore,  and  learned 
from  her  attendants  what  it  meant.  But  the  noise 
was  suddenly  hushed;  a  dismal  silence  prevailed; 
then  came  new  noises,  then  loud  tones  of  command, 
and  violent  blows  on  the  outer  doors.  In  dread  of 
what  was  coming,  the  unhappy  woman  waited  still, 
till  loud  steps  sounded  in  the  passage,  the  attendants 
at  her  door  were  thrust  aside,  and  armed  men  entered 
her  chamber. 


THE   MURDER   OF   AN   EMPRESS.  249 

The  room  was  in  deep  shadow,  only  the  pale 
glimmer  of  a  feeble  light  breaking  the  gloom.  A 
single  maid  remained  with  the  empress,  and  she,  too, 
hastened  to  the  door  on  hearing  the  tramp  of  war- 
like feet. 

"  Do  you,  too,  desert  me  ?"  cried  Agrippina,  in  deep 
reproach. 

At  that  moment  Anicetus  entered  the  room,  fol- 
lowed by  two  other  ruffians.  They  approached  her 
bed.  She  rose  to  receive  them. 

"If  you  come  from  the  prince,"  she  said,  "tell  him 
I  am  well.  If  your  intents  are  murderous,  you  are 
not  sent  by  my  son.  The  guilt  of  parricide  is  foreign 
to  his  heart." 

Her  words  were  checked  by  a  blow  on  the  head 
with  a  club.  A  sword-thrust  followed,  and  she  ex- 
pired under  a  number  of  mortal  wounds.  Thus  died 
the  niece,  the  wife,  and  the  mother  of  an  emperor, 
the  daughter  of  the  celebrated  soldier  Germanicus, 
herself  so  stained  with  vice  that  none  can  pity  her 
fate,  particularly  as  she  had  committed  the  further 
unconscious  crime  of  giving  birth  to  the  monster 
"aamed  Nero. 


BOADICEA,  THE  HEROINE   OF 
BRITAIN. 

PRASUTAGUS,  the  king  of  the  Icenians,  a  tribe  of 
the  ancient  Britons,  had  amassed  much  wealth  in  the 
course  of  a  long  reign.  On  his  death,  in  order  to 
secure  the  favor  of  the  Romans,  now  masters  of  the 
island,  he  left  half  his  wealth  by  will  to  the  emperor 
and  half  to  his  two  daughters.  This  well-judged 
action  of  the  barbarian  king  did  not  have  the  in- 
tended effect.  No  sooner  was  he  dead  than  the 
Romans  in  the  vicinity  claimed  the  whole  estate  as 
theirs,  ruthlessly  pillaged  his  house,  and  seized  all 
his  effects. 

This  base  brigandage  roused  Boadicea,  the  widowed 
queen,  to  a  vigorous  protest,  but  with  the  sole  result 
of  bringing  a  worse  calamity  upon  her  head.  She 
was  seized  and  cruelly  scourged  by  the  ruthless 
Romans,  her  two  daughters  were  vilely  maltreated, 
and  the  noblest  of  the  Icenians  were  robbed  of  their 
possessions  by  the  plunderers,  who  went  so  far  as  to 
reduce  to  slavery  the  near  relatives  of  the  deceased 
king. 

Roused  to  madness  by  this  inhuman  treatment, 

the   Icenians  broke  into  open   revolt.     They  were 

joined  by  a  neighboring -state,  while  the  surrounding 

Britons,  not  yet  inured  to  bondage,  secretly  resolved 

250 


BOADICEA,  THE   HEROINE   OF    BRITAIN.  251 

to  join  the  cause  of  liberty.  There  had  lately  been 
planted  a  colony  of  Koman  veterans  at  Camalodunum 
(Colchester),  who  had  treated  the  Britons  cruelly, 
driven  them  from  their  houses,  and  insulted  them 
with  the  names  of  slaves  and  captives ;  while  the 
common  soldiers,  a  licentious  and  greedy  crew,  still 
further  degraded  and  robbed  the  owners  of  the  land. 

The  invaders  went  too  far  for  British  endurance, 
and  brought  a  terrible  retribution  upon  themselves. 
Paulinus  Suetonius,  an  able  officer,  who  then  com- 
manded in  Britain,  was  absent  on  an  expedition  to 
conquer  the  island  of  Mona.  Of  this  expedition  the 
historian  Tacitus  gives  a  vivid  account.  As  the 
boats  of  the  Romans  approached  the  island  they 
beheld  on  the  shore  the  Britons  prepared  to  receive 
them,  while  through  their  ranks  rushed  their  women 
in  funereal  attire,  their  hair  flying  loose  in  the  wind, 
flaming  torches  in  their  hands,  and  their  whole  ap- 
pearance recalling  the  frantic  rage  of  the  fabled 
Furies.  Near  by,  ranged  in  order,  stood  the  vener- 
able Druids,  or  Celtic  priests,  with  uplifted  hands,  at 
once  invoking  the  gods  and  pouring  forth  impreca- 
tions upon  the  foe. 

The  novelty  and  impressiveness  of  this  spectacle 
filled  the  Romans  with  awe  and  wonder.  They  stood 
in  stupid  amazement,  riveted  to  the  spot,  and  a  mark 
for  the  foe  had  they  been  then  attacked.  From  this 
brief  paralysis  the  voice  of  their  general  recalled 
them,  and,  ashamed  of  being  held  in  awe  by  a  troop 
of  women  and  a  band  of  fanatic  priests,  they  rushed 
to  the  assault,  cut  down  all  before  them,  and  set  fire 
to  the  edifices  and  the  sacred  groves  of  the  island 


252  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

with  the  torches  which  the  Britons  themselves  had 
kindled. 

But  Suetonius  had  chosen  a  perilous  time  for  this 
enterprise.  During  his  absence  the  wrongs  of  the 
Icenians  and  the  exhortations  of  Boadicea  had  roused 
a  formidable  revolt,  and  the  undefended  colonies  of 
the  Romans  were  in  danger. 

In  addition  to  the  actual  peril  the  Romans  were 
frightened  with  dire  omens.  The  statue  of  victory 
at  Camalodunum  fell  without  any  visible  cause,  and 
lay  prostrate  on  the  ground.  Clamors  in  a  foreign 
accent  were  heard  in  the  Roman  council  chamber, 
the  theatres  were  filled  with  the  sound  of  savage 
bowlings,  the  sea  ran  purple  as  with  blood,  the  fig- 
ures of  human  bodies  were  traced  on  the  sands,  and 
the  image  of  a  colony  in  ruins  was  reflected  from  the 
waters  of  the  Thames. 

These  omens  threw  the  Romans  into  despair  and 
filled  the  minds  of  the  Britons  with  joy.  No  effort 
was  made  by  the  soldiers  for  defence,  no  ditch  was 
dug,  no  palisade  erected,  and  the  assault  of  the 
Britons  found  the  colonists  utterly  unprepared. 
Taken  by  surprise,  the  Romans  were  overpowered, 
and  the  colony  was  laid  waste  with  fire  and  sword. 
The  fortified  temple  alone  held  out,  but  after  a  two 
days'  siege  it  also  was  taken,  and  the  legion  which 
marched  to  its  relief  was  cut  to  pieces. 

Boadicea  was  now  the  leading  spirit  among  the 
Britons.  Her  wrongs  had  stirred  them  to  revolt, 
and  her  warlike  energy  led  them  to  victory  and 
revenge.  But  she  was  soon  to  have  a  master-spirit 
to  meet.  Suetonius,  recalled  from  the  island  of  Mona 


BOADICEA,  THE   HEROINE   OF   BRITAIN.  253 

by  tidings  of  rebellion  and  disaster,  marched  hastily 
as  far  as  London,  which  was  even  then  the  chief 
residence  of  the  merchants  and  the  centre  of  trade 
and  commerce  of  the  island. 

His  army  was  small,  not  more  than  ten  thousand 
men  in  all.  That  of  the  Britons  was  large.  The 
interests  of  the  empire  were  greater  than  those  of 
any  city,  and  Suetonius  found  himself  obliged  to 
abandon  London  to  the  barbarians,  despite  the  sup- 
plications of  its  imperilled  citizens.  All  he  would 
agree  to  was  to  take  under  his  protection  those  who 
chose  to  follow  his  banner.  Many  followed  him,  but 
many  remained,  and  no  sooner  had  he  marched  out 
than  the  Britons  fell  in  rage  on  the  settlement,  and 
killed  all  they  found.  In  like  manner  they  ravaged 
Verulamium  (St.  Albans).  Seventy  thousand  Eomans 
are  said  to  have  been  put  to  the  sword. 

Meanwhile  Suetonius  marched  through  the  land, 
and  at  length  the  two  armies  met.  The  skilled 
Roman  general  drew  up  his  force  in  a  place  where  a 
thick  forest  sheltered  the  rear  and  flanks,  leaving 
only  a  narrow  front  open  to  attack.  Here  the 
Britons,  twenty  times  his  number,  and  confident  of 
victory,  approached.  The  warlike  Boadicea,  tall, 
stern  of  countenance,  her  hair  hanging  to  her  waist, 
a  spear  in  her  hand,  drove  along  their  front  in  a  war- 
like car,  with  her  two  daughters  by  her  side,  and 
eloquently  sought  to  rouse  her  countrymen  to  thirst 
for  revenge. 

Telling  them  of  the  base  cruelty  with  which  she 
and  her  daughters  had  been  treated,  and  painting  in 
vivid  words  the  arrogance  and  insults  of  the  Romans, 


254  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

she  besought  them  to  fight  for  their  country  and 
their  homes.  "  On  this  spot  we  must  either  conquer 
or  die  with  glory,"  she  said.  "  There  is  no  alterna- 
tive. Though  I  am  a  woman,  my  resolution  is  fixed. 
The  men,  if  they  prefer,  may  survive  with  infamy 
and  live  in  bondage.  For  me  there  is  only  victory 
or  death." 

Stirred  to  fury  by  her  words,  the  British  host 
poured  like  a  deluge  on  their  foes.  But  the  Eoman 
arms  and  discipline  proved  far  too  much  for  bar- 
barian courage  and  ferocity.  The  British  were  re- 
pulsed, and,  rushing  forward  in  a  wedge  shape,  the 
legions  cut  their  way  with  frightful  carnage  through 
the  disordered  ranks.  The  cavalry  seconded  their 
efforts.  Thousands  fell.  The  rest  took  to  flight. 
But  the  wagons  of  the  British,  which  had  been 
massed  in  the  rear,  impeded  their  flight,  and  a  dread- 
ful slaughter,  in  which  neither  sex  nor  age  was 
spared,  ensued.  Tacitus  tells  us  that  eighty  thou- 
sand Britons  fell,  while  the  Eoman  slain  numbered 
no  more  than  four  hundred  men. 

Boadicea,  who  had  done  her  utmost  to  rally  her 
flying  hosts,  kept  to  her  resolution.  When  all  was 
lost,  she  took  poison,  and  perished  upon  the  field 
where  she  had  vowed  to  seek  victory  or  death. 
With  her  decease  the  success  of  the  Britons  vanished. 
Though  they  still  kept  the  field,  they  gradually 
yielded  to  the  Eoman  arms,  and  Britain  became  in 
time  a  quiet  and  peaceful  part  of  the  great  empire 
of  Eome. 


ROME  SWEPT  BY  FLAMES. 

NERO,  the  cruel  coward  under  whom  Rome  for  its 
gins  was  made  to  suffer,  could  scarcely  devise  follies 
and  atrocities  enough  to  please  his  profligate  fancy. 
He  offended  the  pride  and  sense  of  decorum  of  Rome 
by  forcing  senators  and  women  of  the  highest  rank 
to  appear  as  gladiators  in  the  arena.  He  exposed 
himself  to  ridicule  by  appearing  as  an  actor  in  the 
theatre  at  Naples,  which  theatre,  as  soon  as  the 
audience  dispersed,  tumbled  to  pieces, — a  little  late 
so  far  as  Nero  himself  was  concerned.  Returning 
to  Rome,  he  indulged  in  every  species  of  vice  and 
folly,  lavishing  the  wealth  of  the  state  with  the  ut- 
most prodigality.  On  the  lake  of  Agrippa  he  had  a 
pavilion  erected  on  a  great  floating  platform,  which 
was  moved  from  point  to  point  by  the  aid  of  boats 
superbly  decorated  with  gold  and  ivory,  while  to 
furnish  the  banquet  here  given,  animals  of  the  chase 
were  sought  in  the  whole  country  round,  and  fish 
were  brought  from  every  sea  and  even  from  the 
distant  ocean.  When  night  descended  a  sudden  illu- 
mination burst  forth  from  all  sides,  and  music  re- 
sounded from  every  grove.  These  are  the  mention- 
able  parts  of  the  festival.  Vile  scenes  were  exhibited 
of  which  nothing  can  be  said. 

255 


256  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

Finally,  at  a  loss  in  what  deeper  excess  of  vice  and 
ostentation  to  indulge,  the  crowned  reprobate  set  fire 
to  Rome  that  he  might  enjoy  the  spectacle  of  an  un- 
limited conflagration.  This  wickedness,  it  is  true,  is 
doubted  by  some  historians,  but  we  are  told  that 
during  the  prevalence  of  the  flames  a  crew  of  incen- 
diaries threatened  anyone  with  death  who  should  seek 
to  extinguish  them,  and  flung  flaming  torches  into  the 
dwellings,  crying  that  they  acted  under  orders. 

In  all  the  history  of  Eome  this  fire  was  far  the 
most  violent  and  destructive.  Breaking  out  in  a 
number  of  shops  stored  with  combustible  goods, 
and  driven  by  the  winds,  it  raged  with  the  utmost 
fury,  neither  the  thick  walls  of  the  houses  nor  the 
enclosures  of  the  temples  sufficing  to  stay  its  fright- 
ful progress.  The  form  of  the  streets,  long,  narrow, 
and  winding,  added  to  the  mischief,  and  the  flames 
swiftly  sped  alike  through  the  humblest  and  the 
stateliest  quarters  of  the  mighty  capital. 

"  The  shrieks  and  lamentations  of  women,  the  in- 
firmities of  age,  and  the  weakness  of  the  young  and 
tender,"  says  Tacitus,  "  added  misery  to  the  dreadful 
scene.  Some  endeavored  to  provide  for  themselves, 
others  to  save  their  friends,  in  one  part  dragging 
along  the  lame  and  impotent,  in  another  waiting  to 
receive  the  tardy,  or  expecting  relief  themselves; 
they  hurried,  they  lingered,  they  obstructed  one 
another ;  they  looked  behind,  and  the  fire  broke  out 
in  front ;  they  escaped  from  the  flames,  and  in  their 
place  of  refuge  found  no  safety ;  the  fire  raged  in 
every  quarter;  all  were  involved  in  one  general 
conflagration. 


ROME    SWEPT   BY   FLAMES.  257 

"The  unhappy  wretches  fled  to  places  remote, 
and  thought  themselves  secure,  but  soon  perceived 
the  flames  raging  round  them.  Which  way  to  turn, 
what  to  avoid,  or  what  to  seek,  no  one  could  tell. 
They  crowded  the  streets ;  they  fell  prostrate  on  the 
ground ;  they  lay  stretched  in  the  fields,  in  conster- 
nation and  dismay  resigned  to  their  fate.  Numbers 
lost  their  whole  substance,  even  the  tools  and  imple- 
ments by  which  they  gained  their  livelihood,  and,  in 
that  distress,  did  not  wish  to  survive.  Others,  wild 
with  affliction  for  their  friends  and  relations  whom 
they  could  not  save,  embraced  voluntary  death,  and 
perished  in  the  flames." 

The  story  goes  that,  while  the  city  was  in  its  in- 
tensest  blaze,  Nero  watched  it  with  high  enjoyment 
from  a  tower  in  the  house  of  Maecenas,  and  finally 
went  to  his  own  theatre,  where  in  his  scenic  dress  he 
mounted  the  stage,  tuned  his  harp,  and  sang  the 
destruction  of  Troy. 

How  far  Nero  was  guilty  and  to  what  extent  the 
stories  told  of  him  were  true  will  never  be  known, 
but  he  was  destined  to  feel  the  calamity  himself,  for 
in  time  the  devouring  flames  reached  the  imperial 
palace,  and  laid  it  with  all  its  treasures  and  surround- 
ing buildings  in  ruins.  For  six  days  the  fire  raged 
uncontrolled,  and  then,  when  it  seemed  subdued,  a 
new  conflagration  broke  out  and  burned  with  all  the 
old  fury,  spreading  still  more  widely  the  area  of  ruin 
and  devastation. 

The  number  of  buildings  destroyed  cannot  be 
ascertained.  Not  only  dwellings  and  shops,  but 
temples,  porticos,  and  other  public  buildings,  were 
ii.— r  22* 


258  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

destroyed,  among  them  the  most  venerable  monu- 
ments of  antiquity,  which  the  worship  of  ages  had 
rendered  sacred ;  and  with  these  the  trophies  of 
uncounted  victories,  the  inimitable  works  of  the 
great  artists  of  Greece,  and  precious  monuments  of 
literature  and  ancient  genius,  were  irrecoverably 
lost. 

Whether  or  not  this  fire  took  place  through  Nero's 
orders,  and  was  played  to  by  him  on  the  harp,  he 
showed  more  feeling  for  the  people  and  more  good 
sense  in  the  rebuilding  of  the  city  than  could  have 
been  expected  from  one  of  his  weak  and  vicious 
character.  By  his  orders  the  Field  of  Mars,  the 
magnificent  buildings  erected  by  Agrippa,  and  even 
the  imperial  gardens  were  thrown  open  to  the  house- 
less people,  and  sheds  for  their  shelter  were  erected 
with  all  possible  haste.  Household  utensils  and 
all  kinds  of  useful  implements  were  brought  from 
Ostia  and  other  neighboring  cities,  and  the  price  of 
grain  was  reduced.  But  all  this  failed  to  gain  the 
good-will  of  the  people,  who  were  exasperated  by 
the  story  that  Nero  had  exulted  in  the  grandeur  of 
the  flames,  and  harped  over  burning  Eome. 

When  the  fire  was  at  length  subdued,  of  the  four- 
teen quarters  of  Eome  only  four  were  left  entire ; 
the  remainder  presented  more  or  less  utter  ruin. 
The  conflagration  in  the  time  of  the  Gauls  had  been 
little  more  complete,  while  the  wealth  now  consumed 
was  incomparably  greater.  The  whole  world  had 
been  robbed  of  its  treasures  to  feed  the  flames  of 
Rome.  But  the  haste  and  ill-judged  confusion  with 
which  the  city  was  rebuilt  after  the  irruption  of  the 


ROME   SWEPT   BY   FLAMES.  259 

Gauls  was  not  now  repeated.  A  regular  plan  was 
formed ;  the  new  streets  were  made  wide  and 
straight ;  the  elevation  of  the  houses  was  defined,  and 
each  was  given  an  open  area  before  the  door,  and 
was  adorned  with  porticos.  The  expense  of  these 
porticos  Nero  took  upon  himself.  He  ordered  also 
that  the  new  houses  should  not  be  contiguous,  but 
that  each  should  be  surrounded  by  its  own  enclosure ; 
and,  in  order  to  huriy  the  work,  he  offered  rewards 
to  those  who  should  finish  their  buildings  in  a  fixed 
period.  As  for  the  refuse  of  the  fire,  it  was  removed 
at  Nero's  expense  to  the  marshes  of  Ostia  in  the 
ships  that  brought  corn  up  the  Tiber. 

These  regulations,  while  they  must  have  made 
much  confusion  among  the  rival  claimants  of  build- 
ing sites,  added  greatly  to  the  beauty  and  comfort 
of  the  new  city,  and  the  Rome  which  rose  from  the 
ruins  was  far  more  stately  and  handsome  than  the 
Eome  which  had  vanished  in  ashes  and  smoke.  But 
Nero,  while  showing  some  passing  feeling  for  the 
people  and  some  wisdom  in  the  rebuilding  of  the 
city,  did  not  hesitate  to  use  a  generous  portion  of 
the  devastated  space  for  his  own  advantage.  His 
palace  had  been  destroyed,  and  he  built  a  new  and 
most  magnificent  one  on  the  Palatine  Hill,  the  famous 
"golden  house,"  which  after-ages  beheld  with  un- 
stinted admiration. 

But  he  did  not  confine  his  ostentation  to  the  palace 
itself.  A  great  space  around  it  was  converted  into 
pleasure-grounds  for  his  amusement,  in  which,  as 
Tacitus  says,  "expansive  lakes  and  fields  of  vast 
extent  were  intermixed  with  pleasing  variety ;  woods 


260  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

and  forests  stretched  to  an  immeasurable  length,  pre- 
senting gloom  and  solitude  amid  scenes  of  open  space, 
where  the  eye  wandered  with  surprise  over  an  un- 
bounded prospect." 

But  nothing  that  Nero  could  do  sufficed  to  remove 
from  men's  minds  the  belief  that  on  him  rested  the 
infamy  of  the  fire.  This  public  sentiment  troubled 
and  frightened  him,  and  to  remove  it  he  sought  to 
lay  the  burden  of  guilt  on  others.  It  was  now  the 
year  64  A.D.,  and  for  at  least  thirty  years  the  new 
sect  of  the  Christians  had  been  spreading  in  Rome, 
where  it  had  gained  many  adherents  among  the 
humbler  and  more  moral  section  of  the  population. 
The  Christians  were  far  from  popular.  They  were 
accused  of  secret  and  evil  practices  and  debasing 
superstitions,  and  on  this  despised  sect  Nero  deter- 
mined to  turn  the  fury  of  the  populace. 

With  his  usual  artifice  he  induced  a  number  of 
abandoned  wretches  to  confess  themselves  guilty, 
and  on  their  purchased  evidence  numbers  of  the 
Christians  were  seized  and  convicted,  mainly  on  the 
plea  of  their  sullen  hatred  of  the  whole  human  race. 
A  frightful  persecution  followed,  Nero  perhaps 
hoping,  by  an  exhibition  of  human  suffering,  so  dear 
to  the  rabble  of  Rome,  to  turn  the  thoughts  of  the 
people  from  their  own-losses. 

The  captives  were  put  to  death  with  every  cruelty 
the  emperor  could  devise,  and  to  their  sufferings  he 
added  mockery  and  derision.  Many  were  nailed  to 
the  cross;  others  were  covered  with  the  skins  of 
wild  beasts,  and  left  to  be  devoured  by  dogs ;  num- 
bers were  burned  alive,  many  of  these,  covered  with 


ROME   SWEPT   BY   FLAMES.  261 

inflammable  matter,  being  set  on  fire  to  serve  as 
torches  during  the  night. 

That  the  public  might  see  this  tragic  spectacle 
with  the  more  satisfaction,  it  was  given  in  the  im- 
perial gardens.  The  sports  of  the  circus  were  added 
to  the  tortures  of  the  victims,  Nero  himself  driving 
his  chariot  in  the  races,  or  mingling  with  the  rabble 
in  his  coachman's  dress.  These  cruel  proceedings 
continued  until  even  the  hardened  Eoman  heart 
became  softened  with  compassion,  spectators  failed 
to  come,  and  Nero  felt  obliged  to  yield  to  a  general 
demand  that  the  persecutions  should  cease. 

While  all  this  went  on  at  Eome,  the  people  of  the 
whole  empire  suffered  with  those  of  the  capital  city. 
Italy  was  ravaged  and  the  provinces  plundered  to 
supply  the  demand  for  the  rebuilding  of  the  city  and 
palace  and  the  unbounded  prodigality  of  the  emperor. 
The  very  gods  were  taxed,  their  temples  being 
robbed  of  golden  treasures  which  had  been  gather- 
ing for  ages  through  the  gifts  of  pious  devotees ; 
while  in  Greece  and  Asia  not  alone  the  treasures  of 
the  temples  but  the  statues  of  the  deities  were  seized. 
Nero  was  preparing  for  himself  a  load  of  infamy 
worthy  of  the  most  frightful  retribution,  and  which 
would  not  fail  soon  to  reap  its  fitting  reward. 


THE  DOOM  OF  NERO. 

WE  have  perhaps  paid  too  much  attention  to 
the  enormities  of  Caligula  and  Nero.  Yet  the  mad 
freakishness  of  the  one  and  the  cowardly  dissimula- 
tion of  the  other  give  to  their  stories  a  dramatic  in- 
terest which  seems  to  render  them  worth  repeating. 
Nero,  one  of  the  basest  and  crudest  of  the  Koman 
emperors,  is  one  of  the  best  known  to  readers,  and 
the  interest  felt  in  him  is  not  alone  due  to  the  story 
of  his  life,  but  as  well  to  that  of  his  death,  which  we 
therefore  here  give. 

A  conspiracy  against  him  among  some  of  the 
noblest  citizens  of  Rome  was  discovered  and  pun- 
ished with  revengeful  fury.  It  was  followed,  a  few 
years  afterwards,  by  a  revolt  of  the  armies  in  Gaul 
and  Spain.  This  was  in  its  turn  quelled,  and  Nero 
triumphed  in  imagination  over  all  his  enemies.  But 
he  had  lost  favor  alike  with  the  army  and  the  people, 
and  an  event  now  happened  that  threw  the  whole 
city  into  a  ferment  of  anger  against  him. 

Food  was  scarce,  and  the  arrival  of  a  ship  from 
Alexandria,  supposed  to  be  loaded  with  corn,  filled 
the  people  with  joy.  It  proved  instead  to  be  loaded 
with  sand  for  the  arena'.  In  their  disappointment 
the  people  broke  at  first  into  scurrilous  jests  against 
262 


THE   DOOM   OP   NERO.  263 

Nero,  and  then  into  rage  and  fury.  A  wild  clamor 
filled  the  streets.  On  all  sides  rose  the  demand  to 
be  delivered  from  a  monster.  Even  the  Praetorian 
guards,  who  had  hitherto  supported  the  emperor, 
began  to  show  signs  of  disaffection,  and  were 
wrought  to  a  spirit  of  revolt  by  two  of  the  choice 
companions  of  Nero's  iniquities,  who  now  deserted 
him  as  rats  desert  a  sinking  ship.  The  senate  was 
approached  and  told  that  Nero  was  no  longer  sup- 
ported by  his  friends,  and  that  they  might  now  re- 
gain the  power  of  which  they  had  been  deprived. 

Some  whisper  of  what  was  afloat  reached  Nero's 
ears.  Filled  with  craven  fury,  he  resolved  to  mas- 
sacre the  senate,  to  set  fire  again  to  the  city,  and 
to  let  loose  his  whole  collection  of  wild  beasts.  He 
proposed  to  fly  to  Egypt  during  the  consternation 
that  would  prevail.  A  trusted  servant,  to  whom  he 
told  this  design,  revealed  it  to  the  senate.  It  filled 
them  with  fear  and  rage.  Yet  even  in  so  dire  a  con- 
tingency they  could  not  be  prevailed  upon  to  act 
with  vigor,  and  all  might  have  been  lost  by  their  pro- 
crastination and  timidity  but  for  the  two  men  who 
had  organized  the  revolt. 

These  men,  Nymphidius  and  Tigellinus  by  name, 
went  to  the  palace,  and  with  a  show  of  deep  afflic- 
tion informed  Nero  of  his  danger.  "All  is  lost," 
they  said :  "  the  people  call  aloud  for  vengeance ; 
the  Praetorian  guards  have  abandoned  your  cause; 
the  senate  is  ready  to  pronounce  a  dreadful  judg- 
ment. Only  one  hope  remains  to  you,  to  fly  for 
your  life,  and  seek  a  retreat  in  Egypt." 

It  was  as  they  said ;  revolt  was  everywhere  in  the 


264  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

air,  and  affected  the  armies  near  and  far.  Nero 
sought  assistance,  but  sought  it  in  vain.  The  palace, 
lately  swarming  with  life,  was  now  deserted.  Nero 
wandered  through  its  empty  chambers,  and  found 
only  solitude  and  gloom.  Conscience  awoke  in  his 
seared  heart,  and  he  was  filled  with  horror  and  re- 
morse. Of  all  his  late  crowd  of  courtiers  only  three 
friends  now  remained  with  him, — Sporus,  a  servant ; 
Phaon,  a  freedman ;  and  Epaphroditus,  his  secretary. 

" '  My  wife,  my  father,  and  my  mother  doom  me 
dead !'  "  he  bitterly  cried,  quoting  a  line  from  a 
Greek  tragedy. 

With  a  last  hope  he  bade  the  soldiers  on  duty  to 
hasten  to  Ostia  and  prepare  a  ship,  on  which  he 
might  embark  for  Egypt.  The  men  refused. 

" '  Is  it,  then,  so  wretched  a  thing  to  die  ?' "  said 
one  of  them,  quoting  from  Virgil. 

This  refusal  threw  Nero  into  despair.  He  hurried 
to  the  Servilian  gardens,  with  a  vial  of  deadly  poison, 
which,  on  getting  there,  he  had  not  the  courage  to 
take.  He  returned  to  the  palace  and  threw  himself 
on  his  bed.  Then,  too  agitated  to  lie,  he  sprang  up 
and  called  for  some  friendly  hand  to  end  his  wretched 
life.  No  one  consented,  and  in  his  wild  despair  he 
called  out,  in  doleful  accents,  "  My  friends  desert  me, 
and  I  cannot  find  an  enemy." 

The  world  had  suddenly  fallen  away  from  the  des- 
picable Nero.  A  week  before  he  had  ordered  it  at  his 
will,  now  "  none  so  poor  to  do  him  reverence."  His 
craven  terror  would  have  been  pitiable  in  any  one  to 
whom  the  word  pity  could  apply.  In  frantic  dread 
he  rushed  from  the  palace,  as  if  with  intent  to  fling 


THE   DOOM   OP   NERO.  265 

himself  into  the  Tiber.  Then  as  hastily  he  returned, 
saying  that  he  would  fly  to  Spain,  and  yield  himself 
to  the  mercy  of  Galba,  who  commanded  the  revolted 
army.  But  no  ship  was  to  be  had  for  either  Spain 
or  Egypt,  and  this  plan  was  abandoned  as  quickly  as 
formed. 

These  and  other  projects  passed  in  succession 
through  his  distracted  brain.  One  of  the  most 
absurd  of  them  was  to  go  in  a  mourning  garb  to  the 
Forum,  and  by  his  powers  of  eloquence  seek  to  win 
back  the  favor  of  the  people.  If  they  would  not 
have  him  as  emperor,  he  might  by  persuasive  oratory 
obtain  from  them  the  government  of  Egypt. 

Full  of  hope  in  this  new  project,  he  was  about  to 
put  it  into  effect,  when  a  fresh  reflection  filled  his 
soul  with  horror.  What  if  the  populace  should, 
without  waiting  to  hear  his  harmonious  accents  and 
unequalled  oratory,  break  out  in  sudden  rage  and 
rend  him  limb  from  limb?  Might  they  not  assail 
him  in  the  palace  ?  Might  not  a  seditious  mob  be 
already  on  its  way  thither,  bent  on  bloody  work? 
"Whither  should  he  fly  ?  Where  find  refuge  ? 

Turning  in  despair  to  his  companions,  he  asked 
them,  wildly,  "  Is  there  no  hiding-place,  no  safe  re- 
treat, where  I  may  have  leisure  to  consider  what  is 
to  be  done  ?" 

Phaon,  his  freedman,  told  him  that  he  owned  an 
obscure  villa,  at  a  distance  of  about  four  miles  from 
Rome,  where  he  might  remain  for  a  time  in  conceal- 
ment. 

This  suggestion,  in  Nero's  state  of  distraction,  was 
eagerly  embraced, — in  such  haste,  indeed,  that  he  left 
M  23 


266  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  palace  without  an  instant's  preparation,  his  feet 
destitute  of  shoes,  and  no  garment  but  his  close 
tunic,  his  outer  garments  and  imperial  robe  having 
been  discarded  in  his  distraction.  The  utmost  he 
did  was  to  snatch  up  an  old  rusty  robe  as  a  disguise, 
covering  his  head  with  it,  and  holding  a  handker- 
chief before  his  face.  Thus  attired,  he  mounted  his 
horse  and  fled  in  frantic  fear,  attended  only  by  the 
three  men  we  have  mentioned,  and  a  fourth  named 
Neophytus. 

Meanwhile,  the  revolt  in  the  city  was  growing 
more  and  more  decided.  When  the  coming  day 
showed  its  first  faint  rays,  the  Praetorian  guards, 
who  had  been  on  duty  in  the  palace,  left  their  post 
and  marched  to  the  camp.  Here,  under  the  influ- 
ence of  Nymphidius,  Galba  was  nominated  emperor. 
This  was  an  important  innovation  in  the  govern- 
ment of  Rome.  Hitherto  the  imperial  dignity  had 
remained  in  the  family  of  Caesar,  descending  by 
hereditary  transmission.  Nero  was  the  last  of  that 
family  to  wear  the  crown.  Henceforth  the  army 
and  its  generals  controlled  the  destinies  of  the  em- 
pire. The  nomination  of  Galba  by  the  Praetorian 
guard  signalized  the  new  state  of  things,  in  which 
the  emperors  would  largely  be  chosen  by  that  guard 
or  by  some  army  in  the  field. 

The  action  of  the  Praetorian  guard  was  supported 
by  the  senate.  That  body,  awaking  from  its  late 
timidity,  determined  to  mark  the  day  with  a  decree 
worthy  of  its  past  history.  With  unanimous  de- 
cision they  pronounced  Nero  a  tyrant  who  had 
trampled  on  all  laws,  human  and  divine,  and  con- 


THE   DOOM   OF   NERO.  267 

demned  him  to  suffer  death  with  all  the  rigor  of  the 
ancient  laws. 

"While  this  revolution  was  taking  place  in  the  city 
the  terror-stricken  Nero  was  still  in  frantic  flight. 
He  passed  the  Praetorian  camp  near  enough  to  hear 
loud  acclamations,  among  which  the  name  of  Galba 
reached  his  ear.  As  the  small  cavalcade  hastened 
by  a  man  early  at  work  in  the  fields,  he  looked  up 
and  said,  "  These  people  must  be  hot  in  pursuit  of 
Nero."  A  short  distance  farther  another  hailed 
them,  asking,  "What  do  they  say  of  Nero  in  the 
city?" 

A  more  alarming  event  occurred  soon.  As  they 
drew  near  Phaon's  house  the  horse  of  Nero  started 
at  a  dead  carcass  beside  the  road,  shaking  down  the 
handkerchief  by  which  he  had  concealed  his  face. 
The  movement  revealed  him  to  a  veteran  soldier, 
then  on  his  way  to  Rome,  and  ignorant  of  what  was 
taking  place  in  the  city.  He  recognized  and  saluted 
the  emperor  by  name. 

This  incident  increased  Nero's  fear.  His  route  of 
flight  would  now  be  known.  He  pressed  his  horse 
to  the  utmost  speed  until  Phaon's  house  was  close  at 
hand.  They  now  halted  and  Nero  dismounted,  it 
being  thought  unsafe  for  him  to  enter  the  house 
publicly.  He  crossed  a  field  overgrown  with  reeds, 
and,  being  tortured  with  thirst,  scooped  up  some 
water  from  a  muddy  ditch  and  drank  it,  saying, 
dolefully,  "  Is  this  the  beverage  which  Nero  has  been 
used  to  drink  ?" 

Phaon  advised  him  to  conceal  himself  in  a  neigh- 
boring  sand-pit,  from  which  could  be  opened  for  him 


268  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

a  subterraneous  passage  to  the  house,  but  Nero  re- 
fused,  saying  that  he  did  not  care  to  be  buried  alive. 
His  companions  then  made  an  opening  in  the  wall 
on  one  side  of  the  house,  through  which  Nero  crept 
on  his  hands  and  knees.  Entering  a  wretched 
chamber,  he  threw  himself  on  a  mean  bed,  which  was 
covered  with  a  tattered  coverlet,  and  asked  for  some 
refreshment. 

All  they  could  offer  him  was  a  little  coarse  bread, 
so  black  that  the  sight  of  it  sickened  his  dainty 
taste,  and  some  warm  and  foul  water,  which  thirst 
forced  him  to  drink.  His  friends  meanwhile  were 
in  little  less  desperation  than  himself.  They  saw 
that  no  hope  was  left  and  that  his  place  of  conceal- 
ment-would soon  be  known,  and  entreated  him  to 
avoid  a  disgraceful  death  by  taking  his  own  life. 

Nero  promised  to  do  so,  but  still  sought  reasons 
for  delay.  His  funeral  must  be  prepared  for,  he 
said,  and  bade  them  to  dig  a  grave,  to  prepare  wood 
for  a  funeral  pile,  and  bring  marble  to  cover  his 
remains.  Meanwhile  he  piteously  bewailed  his  un- 
happy lot;  sighed  and  shed  tears  copiously;  and 
said,  with  a  last  impulse  of  vanity,  "  What  a  musi- 
cian the  world  will  lose !" 

While  he  thus  in  cowardly  procrastination  delayed 
the  inevitable  end,  a  messenger,  whom  Phaon  had 
ordered  to  bring  news  from  Eome,  arrived  with 
papers.  These  Nero  eagerly  seized  and  read.  He 
found  himself  dethroned,  declared  a  public  enemy, 
and  condemned  to  suffer  death  with  the  rigor  of 
ancient  usage.  Such  was  the  decree  of  the  senate, 
which  hitherto  had  been  his  subservient  slave. 


THE   DOOM   OF    NERO.  269 

"Ancient  usage?"  he  asked.  "What  do  they 
mean  ?  What  kind  of  death  is  that  ?" 

"  It  is  this,"  they  told  him.  "  Every  traitor,  by 
the  law  of  the  old  republic,  with  his  head  fastened 
between  two  stakes,  and  his  body  stripped  naked, 
was  slowly  flogged  to  death  by  the  lictors'  rods." 

Dread  of  this  terrible  and  ignominious  punish- 
ment roused  the  trembling  wretch  to  some  sem- 
blance of  courage.  He  produced  two  daggers,  which 
he  had  brought  with  him,  and  tried  their  points. 
Then  he  replaced  them  in  their  scabbards,  saying, 
"  The  fatal  moment  is  not  yet  come." 

Turning  to  Sporus,  he  said,  "Sing  the  melancholy 
dirge,  and  offer  the  last  obsequies  to  your  friend." 
Then,  rolling  his  eyes  wildly  around,  he  exclaimed, 
"  Why  will  not  some  one  of  you  kill  himself,  and 
teach  me  how  to  die  ?" 

He  paused  a  moment.  No  one  seemed  inclined  to 
adopt  his  suggestion.  A  flood  of  tears  burst  from 
his  eyes.  Starting  up,  he  cried,  in  a  tone  of  wild 
despair,  "Nero,  this  is  infamy;  you  linger  in  dis- 
grace; this  is  no  time  for  dejected  passions;  this 
moment  calls  for  manly  fortitude." 

These  words  were  hardly  spoken  when  the  sound 
of  horses  was  heard  advancing  rapidly  towards  the 
house.  Theatrical  to  the  end,  he  repeated  a  line 
from  Homer  which  the  noise  of  hoofs  recalled  to  his 
mind.  At  length,  driven  to  desperation,  he  seized 
his  dagger  and  stabbed  himself  in  the  throat, — but 
cowardice  made  the  stroke  too  feeble.  Epaphroditus 
now  lent  his  aid,  and  the  next  thrust  was  a  mortal 
one. 

23* 


270  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

It  was  time.  The  horses  were  those  of  pursuers. 
The  senate,  informed  of  his  probable  place  of  refuge, 
had  sent  soldiers  in  haste  to  bring  him  back  to  Eome. 
there  to  suffer  the  punishment  decreed.  In  a  minute 
afterwards  a  centurion  entered  the  room,  and,  seeing 
Nero  prostrate  and  bleeding,  ran  to  his  aid,  saying 
that  he  would  bind  the  wound  and  save  his  life. 

Nero  looked  up  languidly,  and  said,  in  faint  tones, 
"  You  come  too  late.  Is  this  your  fidelity  ?"  In  a 
moment  more  he  expired. 

In  the  words  of  Tacitus,  "The  ferocity  of  his 
nature  was  still  visible  in  his  countenance.  His  eyes 
fixed  and  glaring,  and  every  feature  swelled  with 
warring  passions,  he  looked  more  stern,  more  grim, 
more  terrible  than  ever." 

Nero  was  in  his  thirty-second  year.  He  had 
reigned  nearly  fourteen  years.  Tacitus  says  of 
him,  "  The  race  of  Csesars  ended  with  Nero ;  he  was 
the  last,  and  perhaps  the  worst,  of  that  illustrious 
house." 

The  tidings  of  his  death  filled  Rome  with  joy. 
Men  ran  wildly  about  the  streets,  their  heads  cov- 
ered with  liberty  caps.  Acclamations  of  gladness 
resounded  in  the  Forum.  Icelus,  Galba's  freedman 
and  agent  in  Eome,  whom  Nero  had  thrown  into 
prison,  was  released  and  took  control  of  affairs.  He 
ordered  that  Nero's  body  should  be  burned  where  he 
had  died,  and  this  was  done  so  quickly  and  secretly 
that  many  would  not  believe  that  he  was  dead.  The 
report  got  abroad  that  he  had  escaped  to  Asia  or 
Egypt,  and  from  time  to  time  impostors  appeared 
claiming  to  be  Nero.  The  Parthians  were  deluded 


THE   DOOM   OF   NERO.  271 

by  one  of  these  impostors  and  offered  to  defend  his 
cause.  Another  made  trouble  in  the  Greek  islands. 
Nero's  profligate  companions  in  Eome,  who  alone 
mourned  his  death,  while  affecting  to  believe  him 
still  alive  raised  a  tomb  to  his  memory,  which  for 
several  years  they  annually  dressed  with  the  flowers 
of  spring  and  summer.  But  the  world  at  large 
rejoiced  in  its  delivery  from  the  rule  of  a  monster 
of  iniquity. 


THE   SPORTS   OF  THE  AM  PHI. 
THEATRE. 


IN  no  other  nation  upon  the  earth  and  no  other 
period  of  history  has  enjoyment  taken  so  cruel  and 
brutal  a  shape  as  in  the  Roman  empire.  The  fierce 
people  of  the  imperial  city  seemed  to  have  a  native 
thirst  for  blood  and  misery,  which  no  amount  of 
slaughter  in  the  arena,  of  the  sufferings  of  captives 
and  slaves,  or  of  the  torments  of  persecuted  Chris- 
tians sufficed  to  assuage.  The  love  of  theatrical 
representations,  which  has  proved  so  potent  and  un- 
ceasing with  other  nations,  had  but  a  brief  period 
of  prevalence  in  Rome,  its  milder  enjoyment  vanish- 
ing before  the  wild  excitement  of  the  gladiatorial 
struggle  and  the  spectacle  of  rending  beasts  and 
slaughtered  martyrs. 

It  was  not  in  the  theatre,  but  in  the  amphitheatre, 
that  the  Romans  sought  their  chief  enjoyment,  and 
few  who  wished  the  favor  of  the  Roman  people 
failed  to  seek  it  by  the  easy  though  costly  means  of 
gladiatorial  shows.  The  amphitheatre  differed  from 
the  theatre  in  forming  a  complete  circle  or  oval  in- 
stead of  a  semicircle,  with  an  arena  in  the  centre 
instead  of  a  stage  at  the  side.  It  also  greatly  sur- 
passed the  theatre  in  BiZe,  the  purpose  being  to  see, 
not  to  hear. 
272 


THE   SPORTS   OP   THE   AMPHITHEATRE.  273 

These  buildings  were  at  first  temporary  edifices 
of  wood,  but  of  enormous  size,  since  one  which  col- 
lapsed at  Fidense,  during  the  reign  of  Tiberius,  is 
said  to  have  caused  the  death  of  fifty  thousand 
spectators.  The  first  of  stone  was  built  by  the  com- 
mand of  Augustus.  But  the  great  amphitheatre  of 
Eome,  the  Flavian,  whose  mighty  ruins  we  possess 
in  the  Colosseum,  was  that  begun  by  Yespasian,  and 
finished  by  Titus  ten  years  after  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem. 

This  vast  building  is  elliptical  in  shape  and  covers 
about  five  acres  of  ground,  being  six  hundred  and 
twelve  feet  in  its  greatest  length  and  five  hundred 
and  fifteen  in  greatest  breadth.  It  is  based  on  rows 
of  arches,  eighty  in  number,  and  rises  in  four  differ- 
ent orders  of  architecture  to  a  height  of  about  one 
hundred  and  sixty  feet.  The  outside  of  this  great 
edifice  was  encrusted  with  marble  and  decorated  with 
statues.  Interiorly  its  vast  slopes  presented  sixty 
or  eighty  rows  of  marble  seats,  covered  with  cushions, 
and  capable  of  seating  more  than  eighty  thousand 
spectators.  There  were  sixty-four  doors  of  en- 
trance and  exit,  and  the  entrances,  passages,  and 
stairs  were  so  skilfully  constructed  that  every  person 
could  with  ease  and  safety  reach  and  leave  his  place. 

Nothing  was  omitted  that  could  add  to  the  pleas- 
ure and  convenience  of  the  spectators.  An  ample 
canopy,  drawn  over  their  heads,  protected  them 
from  the  sun  and  the  rain.  Fountains  refreshed 
the  air  with  cooling  moisture,  and  aromatics  pro- 
fusely perfumed  the  air.  In  the  centre  was  the 
arena  or  stage,  strewn  with  fine  sand,  and  capable 
ii. — * 


274  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

of  being  changed  to  suit  varied  spectacles.  Now  it 
appeared  to  rise  out  of  the  earth,  like  the  gardens 
of  the  Hesperides ;  now  it  was  made  to  represent 
the  rocks  and  caverns  of  Thrace.  Water  was  abun- 
dantly supplied  by  concealed  pipes,  and  the  sand- 
strewn  plain  might  at  will  be  converted  into  a  wide 
lake,  sustaining  armed  vessels,  and  displaying  the 
swimming  monsters  of  the  deep. 

In  these  spectacles  the  Koman  emperors  loved 
to  display  their  wealth.  On  various  occasions  the 
whole  furniture  of  the  amphitheatre  was  of  amber, 
silver,  or  gold,  and  in  one  display  the  nets  provided 
for  defence  against  wild  beasts  were  of  gold  wire, 
the  porticos  were  gilded,  and  the  belt  or  circle  that 
divided  the  several  ranks  of  spectators  was  studded 
with  a  precious  mosaic  of  beautiful  stones.  In  the 
dedication  of  this  mighty  edifice  five  thousand  wild 
beasts  were  slain  in  the  arena,  the  games  lasting  one 
hundred  days. 

The  first  show  of  gladiators  in  Rome  was  one 
given  by  Marcus  and  Decius  Brutus,  on  the  occa- 
sion of  thr  death  of  their  father,  264  B.C.  Three 
pairs  of  gladiators  fought  in  this  first  contest.  This 
gladiatorial  spectacle  was  continued  on  funeral  occa- 
sions, but  afterwards  lost  its  religious  character  an.d 
became  a  popular  amusement,  there  being  schools 
for  the  training  of  gladiators,  whose  pupils  were  re- 
cruited from  the  captives  of  Eome,  from  condemned 
criminals,  and  from  vigorous  men  desirous  of  fame. 

As  time  went  on  the  magnificence  of  these  spec- 
tacles increased.  Julius  Caesar  gave  one  in  which 
three  hundred  and  twenty  combatants  fought.  Tra- 


THE   SPORTS   OF   THE   AMPHITHEATRE.  275 

jan  far  surpassed  this  with  a  show  that  lasted  for 
one  hundred  and  twenty -three  days,  and  in  which 
ten  thousand  men  fought  with  each  other  or  with 
wild  beasts  for  the  pleasure  of  the  Roman  populace. 

The  gladiators  were  variously  armed,  some  with 
sword,  shield,  and  body  armor;  some  with  net  and 
trident;  some  with  noose  or  lasso.  The  disarmed 
or  overthrown  gladiator  was  killed  or  spared  in  re- 
sponse to  signals  made  by  the  thumbs  of  the  spec- 
tators ;  while  the  successful  combatant  was  rewarded 
at  first  with  a  palm  branch,  afterwards  with  money 
and  rich  and  valuable  presents. 

The  gladiators  were  not  always  passive  instru- 
ments of  Eoman  cruelty.  We  have  elsewhere  de- 
scribed the  revolt  of  Spartacus  and  his  brave 
struggle  for  liberty.  Other  outbreaks  took  place. 
During  the  reign  of  Probus  a  revolt  of  about  eighty 
gladiators  out  of  a  school  of  some  six  hundred  filled 
Rome  with  death  and  alarm.  Killing  their  keepers, 
they  broke  into  the  streets,  which  they  set  afloat 
with  blood,  and  only  after  an  obstinate  resistance 
and  ample  revenge  were  they  at  length  overpowered 
and  cut  to  pieces  by  the  soldiers  of  the  city.  But 
such  outbreaks  were  but  few,  and  the  Roman  mul- 
titude usually  enjoyed  its  cruel  sports  in  safety. 

We  cannot  here  describe  the  many  remarkable 
displays  made  by  successive  emperors,  and  which 
grew  more  lavish  as  time  went  on.  Probus,  about 
280  A.D.,  gave  a  show  in  which  the  arena  was  trans- 
formed into  a  forest,  large  trees,  dug  up  by  the  roots, 
being  transported  and  planted  throughout  its  space. 
In  this  miniature  forest  were  set  free  a  thousand 


276  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ostriches,  and  an  equal  number  each  of  stags,  fallow 
deer,  and  wild  boars.  These  were  given  to  the  mul- 
titude to  assail  and  slay  at  their  will.  On  the  fol- 
lowing day,  the  populace  being  now  safely  screened 
from  danger,  there  were  slain  in  the  arena  a  hundred 
lions,  as  many  lionesses,  two  hundred  leopards,  and 
three  hundred  bears. 

The  younger  Gordian,  in  his  triumphal  games, 
astonished  the  Romans  by  the  strangeness  of  the 
animals  displayed,  in  search  of  which  the  whole 
known  world  was  ransacked.  The  curious  mob  now 
beheld  the  graceful  forms  of  twenty  zebras,  and  the 
remarkable  stature  of  ten  giraffes,  brought  from  re- 
mote African  plains.  There  were  shown,  in  addition, 
ten  elks,  as  many  tigers  from  India,  and  thirty 
African  hyenas.  To  these  were  added  a  troop  of 
thirty-two  elephants,  and  the  uncouth  forms  of  the 
hippopotamus  of  the  Nile  and  the  rhinoceros  of  the 
African  wilds.  These  animals,  familiar  to  us,  were 
new  to  their  observers,  and  filled  the  minds  of  their 
spectators  with  wonder  and  awe. 

Gladiators,  as  we  have  said,  were  not  confined 
to  slaves,  captives,  and  criminals.  Roman  citizens, 
emulous  of  the  fame  and  rewards  of  the  successful 
combatant,  entered  their  ranks,  and  men  of  birth 
and  fortune,  thirsting  for  the  excitement  of  the 
arenal  strife,  were  often  seen  in  the  lists.  In  the 
reign  of  Nero,  senators,  and  even  women  of  high 
birth,  appeared  as  combatants;  and  Domitian  ar- 
ranged a  battle  between  dwarfs  and  women.  As 
late  as  200  A.D.  an  edict  forbidding  women  to  fight 
became  necessary. 


THE    SPORTS   OP   THE   AMPHITHEATRE.  277 

The  emperors,  as  a  rule,  were  content  with  send- 
ing their  subjects  to  death  in  those  frightful  shows  j 
but  one  of  them,  Commodus,  proud  of  his  strength 
and  skill,  himself  entered  the  lists  as  a  combatant. 
He  was  at  first  content  with  displaying  his  remark- 
able skill  as  an  archer  against  wild  animals.  With 
arrows  whose  head  was  shaped  like  a  crescent,  he 
cut  asunder  the  long  neck  of  the  ostrich,  and  with 
the  strength  of  his  bow  pierced  alike  the  thick  skin 
of  the  elephant  and  the  scaly  hide  of  the  rhinoceros. 
A  panther  was  let  loose  and  a  slave  forced  to  act  as 
its  prey.  But  at  the  instant  when  the  beast  leaped 
upon  the  man  the  shaft  of  Commodus  flew,  and  the 
animal  fell  dead,  leaving  its  prey  unhurt.  No  less 
than  a  hundred  lions  were  let  loose  at  once  in  the 
arena,  and  the  death-dealing  darts  of  the  emperor 
hurtled  among  them  until  they  all  were  slain. 

During  this  exhibition  of  skill  the  emperor  was 
securely  protected  against  any  chance  danger  from 
his  victims.  But  later,  to  the  shame  and  indigna- 
tion of  the  people,  he  entered  the  arena  as  a  gladi- 
ator, and  fought  there  no  less  than  seven  hundred 
and  thirty-five  times.  He  was  well  protected,  wear- 
ing the  helmet,  shield,  and  sword  of  the  Secutor, 
while  his  antagonists  were  armed  with  the  net  and 
trident  of  the  Retiarius.  It  was  the  aim  of  the 
latter  to  entangle  his  opponent  in  the  net  and  then 
despatch  him  with  the  trident,  and  if  he  missed  he 
was  forced  to  fly  till  he  had  prepared  his  net  for  a 
second  throw. 

As  may  be  imagined,  in  these  contests  Commo- 
dus was  uniformly  successful.  His  opponents  were 
24 


278  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

schooled  not  to  put  forth  their  full  skill,  and  were 
usually  given  their  lives  in  reward.  But  the  em- 
peror claimed  the  prize  of  the  successful  gladiator, 
and  himself  fixed  this  reward  at  so  high  a  price  that 
to  pay  it  became  a  new  tax  on  the  Roman  people. 
Commodus,  we  may  say  here,  met  with  the  usual 
fate  of  the  base  and  cruel  emperors  of  Borne,  falling 
by  the  hands  of  assassins. 

The  gladiatorial  shows  were  not  without  their 
opponents  in  Rome.  Under  the  republic  efforts 
were  made  to  limit  the  number  of  combatants  and 
the  frequency  of  the  displays,  and  the  Emperor 
Augustus  forbade  more  than  two  shows  in  a  year. 
They  were  prohibited  by  Constantino,  the  first 
Christian  emperor,  in  325  A.D.,  but  continued  at  in- 
tervals till  404.  In  that  year  Telemachus,  an  Asiatic 
monk,  filled  with  horror  at  the  cruelty  of  the  prac- 
tice, made  his  way  to  Rome,  and  during  a  contest 
rushed  into  the  arena  and  tried  to  part  two  gladia- 
tors. 

The  spectators,  furious  at  this  interruption  of 
their  sport,  stoned  the  monk  to  death.  But  the 
Emperor  Honorius  proclaimed  him  a  martyr,  and 
issued  an  edict  which  finally  brought  such  exhi- 
bitions to  an  end. 

There  was  another  form  of  spectacle  at  Rome,  in 
its  way  as  significant  of  cruelty  and  ruthlessness, 
the  Triumph,  each  occasion  of  which  signified  some 
nation  conquered  or  army  defeated,  and  thousands 
slain  or  plunged  into  misery  and  destitution.  The 
victorious  general  to  whom  the  senate  granted  the 
honor  of  a  triumph  was  not  allowed  to  enter  the 


THE   SPORTS   OP   THE   AMPHITHEATRE.  279 

city  in  advance,  and  Lucullus,  on  his  return  from 
victory  in  Asia,  waited  outside  Eorae  for  three  years, 
until  the  desired  honor  was  granted  him. 

Starting  from  the  Field  of  Mars,  outside  the  city 
walls,  the  procession  passed  through  the  gayly  gar- 
landed streets  to  the  Capitol.  It  was  headed  by  the 
magistrates  and  senate  of  Eome,  who  were  followed 
by  trumpeters,  and  then  by  the  spoils  of  war,  con- 
sisting not  only  of  treasures  and  standards,  but  of 
representations  of  battles,  towns,  fortresses,  rivers, 
etc. 

Next  came  the  victims  intended  for  sacrifice, 
largely  composed  of  white  oxen  with  gilded  horns. 
They  were  followed  by  prisoners  kept  to  grace  the 
triumph,  and  who  were  put  to  death  when  the 
Capitol  was  reached.  Afterwards  came  the  gor- 
geous chariot  of  the  conqueror,  crowned  with  laurel 
and  drawn  by  four  horses.  He  wore  robes  of  purple 
and  gold  taken  from  the  temple  of  Jupiter,  carried 
a  laurel  branch  in  his  right  hand,  and  in  his  left  a 
sceptre  of  ivory  with  an  eagle  at  its  tip.  After  him 
came  the  soldiers,  singing  lo  triumphe  and  other 
songs  of  victory. 

On  reaching  the  Capitol  the  victor  placed  the 
laurel  branch  on  the  cap  of  the  seated  Jupiter, 
and  offered  the  thank-offerings.  A  feast  of  the  dig- 
nitaries, and  sometimes  of  the  soldiers  and  people, 
followed.  The  ceremony  at  first  occupied  one  day 
only,  but  in  later  times  was  extended  through 
several  days,  and  was  frequently  attended  with 
gladiatorial  shows  and  other  spectacles  for  the 
greater  enjoyment  of  the  Eoman  multitude. 


THE  REIGN    OF  A    GLUTTON. 

THE  death  of  Nero  cut  all  the  reins  of  order  in 
Rome.  Until  now,  as  stated  in  a  preceding  tale,  some 
form  of  hereditary  succession  had  been  followed,  the 
emperors  being  of  the  family  of  Cffisar,  though  not 
his  direct  descendants.  Now  confusion  reigned  su- 
preme. The  army  took  upon  itself  the  task  of  nomi- 
nating the  emperor,  and  within  less  than  two  years 
four  emperors  came  in  succession  to  the  royal  seat, 
each  the  general  of  one  of  the  armies  of  Rome. 

Galba,  who  headed  the  revolt  against  Nero,  and 
succeeded  him  on  the  throne,  reigned  but  seven 
months,  being  overthrown  by  Otho,  who  conspired 
against  him  with  the  Praetorian  guards.  The  new 
emperor  reigned  only  three  months.  The  army  of 
Germany  proclaimed  their  general — Vitellius — em- 
peror, marched  against  Otho,  and  defeated  him.  He 
ended  the  contest  by  committing  suicide.  Vitellius 
reigned  less  than  a  year.  The  army  of  the  East 
rebelled  against  him,  proclaimed  their  general — Ves- 
pasian— emperor,  and  a  new  civil  war  broke  out, 
which  was  closed  by  the  speedy  downfall  of  Vitellius. 
It  is  the  story  of  this  man,  emperor  for  less  than  a 
year,  which  we  have  here  to  describe. 

The  three  men  named  were  alike  unfit  to  reign 
280 


THE   REIGN    OP   A   GLUTTON.  281 

over  Home.  Galba  was  very  old  and  very  incompe- 
tent, Otho  was  a  declared  profligate,  and  Vitellius 
was  a  glutton  of  such  extraordinary  powers  that 
his  name  has  become  a  synonyme  for  voracity.  He 
had  by  his  arts  and  his  skill  as  a  courtier  made  him- 
self a  favorite  with  four  emperors  of  widely  differing 
character, — Tiberius,  Caligula,  Claudius,  and  Nero. 
The  suicide  of  Otho  had  now  made  him  emperor 
himself,  and  he  gave  way  without  stint  to  the  pecu- 
liar vice  which  has  made  his  name  despicable,  that 
of  inordinate  love  of  the  pleasures  of  the  table. 

After  the  death  of  Otho,  says  Tacitus,  "  Vitellius, 
sunk  in  sloth,  and  growing  every  day  more  contempt- 
ible, advanced  by  slow  marches  towards  the  city  of 
Home.  In  all  the  villas  and  municipal  towns  through 
which  he  passed,  carousing  festivals  were  sufficient 
to  retard  a  man  abandoned  to  his  pleasures.  He  was 
followed  by  an  unwieldy  multitude,  not  less  than 
sixty  thousand  men  in  arms,  all  corrupted  by  a  life 
of  debauchery.  The  number  of  retainers  and  fol- 
lowers of  the  army  was  still  greater,  all  disposed  to 
riot  and  insolence,  even  beyond  the  natural  bent  of 
the  vilest  slaves. 

"The  crowd  was  still  increased  by  a  conflux  of 
senators  and  Roman  knights,  who  came  from  Rome 
to  greet  the  prince  on  his  way ;  some  impelled  by 
fear,  others  to  pay  their  court,  and  numbers,  not  to 
be  thought  sullen  or  disaffected.  All  went  with  the 
current.  The  populace  rushed  forth  in  crowds,  ac- 
companied by  an  infamous  band  of  pimps,  players, 
buffoons,  and  charioteers,  by  their  utility  in  vicious 
pleasures  all  well  known  and  dear  to  Vitellius. 
24* 


282  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

"To  supply  so  vast  a  body  with  provisions  the 
colonies  and  municipal  cities  were  exhausted ;  the 
fruits  of  the  earth,  then  ripe  and  fit  for  use,  were 
carried  off;  the  husbandman  was  plundered;  and 
his  land,  as  if  it  were  an  enemy's  country,  was  laid 
waste  and  ruined." 

The  followers  of  Vitellius  were  many  of  them 
Germans  and  Gauls,  so  savage  of  aspect  as  to  create 
consternation  in  Rome.  "  Covered  with  the  skins 
of  savage  beasts,  and  wielding  large  and  massive 
spears,  the  spectacle  which  they  exhibited  to  the 
Roman  citizens  was  fierce  and  hideous."  They  were 
as  savage  as  they  looked,  and  many  conflicts  took 
place  both  outside  and  inside  of  Rome,  in  which 
numbers  of  citizens  were  slaughtered.  In  fact,  the 
march  of  Vitellius  to  Rome  was  almost  like  that  of 
a  conqueror  through  a  captive  province. 

The  conduct  of  Yitellius  and  his  army  in  Rome 
was  an  abhorrent  spectacle  of  sloth  and  licentious- 
ness. All  discipline  vanished.  The  Germans  and 
Gauls  entered  into  the  vilest  habits  of  the  city,  and 
by  their  disorderly  lives  brought  on  an  epidemic  dis- 
ease which  swept  thousands  of  them  away.  Vitel- 
lius, lost  in  sluggishness  and  gluttony,  wasted  the 
funds  of  the  state  on  his  pleasures,  and  laid  severe 
taxes  to  raise  new  funds.  "  To  squander  with  wild 
profusion,"  says  Tacitus, "  was  the  only  use  of  money 
known  to  Vitellius.  He  built  a  set  of  stables  for  the 
charioteers,  and  kept  in  the  circus  a  constant  spec- 
tacle of  gladiators  and  wild  beasts ;  in  this  manner 
dissipating  with  prodigality,  as  if  his  treasury  over- 
flowed with  riches." 


THE   REIQN   OF   A   GLUTTON.  283 

While  the  Vitellian  army  was  indulging  in  riot, 
bloodshed,  and  vice,  and  the  populace  was  kept 
amused  by  the  frightful  gladiatorial  shows,  the 
emperor  spent  his  days  in  a  sloth  and  gluttony  that 
stand  unrivalled  in  imperial  records.  We  may  quote 
from  Whyte-Melville's  romance  of  "  The  Gladiators" 
a  sketch  of  a  Vitellian  banquet  whose  characteristic 
features  are  taken  from  exact  history : 

"  A  banquet  with  Vitellius  was  no  light  and  simple 
repast.  Leagues  of  sea  and  miles  of  forest  had  been 
swept  to  furnish  the  mere  groundwork  of  the  enter- 
tainment. Hardy  fishermen  had  spent  their  nights 
on  the  heaving  wave,  that  the  giant  turbot  might 
flap  its  snowy  flakes  on  the  emperor's  table  broader 
than  its  broad  dish  of  gold.  Many  a  swelling  hill, 
clad  in  the  dark  oak  coppice,  had  echoed  to  ringing 
shout  of  hunter  and  deep-mouthed  bay  of  hound,  ere 
the  wild  boar  yielded  his  grim  life  by  the  morass, 
and  the  dark,  grisly  carcass  was  drawn  off  to  pro- 
vide a  standing  dish  that  was  only  meant  to  gratify 
the  eye.  Even  the  peacock  roasted  in  its  feathers 
was  too  gross  a  dainty  for  epicures  who  studied  the 
art  ot  gastronomy  under  Caesar;  and  that  tasie 
would  have  been  considered  rustic  in  the  extreme 
which  could  partake  of  more  than  the  mere  fumes 
and  savor  of  so  substantial  a  dish.  A  thousand 
nightingales  had  been  trapped  and  killed,  indeed, 
for  this  one  supper,  but  brains  and  tongues  were  all 
they  contributed  to  the  banquet;  whilo  even  the 
wing  of  a  roasted  hare  would  have  been  considered 
far  too  coarse  and  common  food  for  the  imperial 
board. 


284  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

"  It  would  be  useless  to  go  into  the  details  of  such 
a  banquet  as  that  which  was  placed  before  the  guests 
of  Caesar.  Wild  boar,  pasties,  goats,  every  kind  of 
shell-fish,  thrushes,  beccaficoes,  vegetables  of  all  de- 
scriptions, and  poultry,  were  removed  to  make  way 
for  the  pheasant,  the  guinea-hen,  the  capon,  venison, 
ducks,  woodcocks,  and  turtle-doves.  Everything  that 
could  creep,  fly,  or  swim,  and  could  boast  a  delicate 
flavor  when  cooked,  was  pressed  into  the  service  of 
the  emperor ;  and  when  appetite  was  appeased  and 
could  do  no  more,  the  strongest  condiments  and  other 
remedies  were  used  to  stimulate  fresh  hunger  and 
consume  a  fresh  supply  of  superfluous  dainties." 

Deep  drinking  followed,  merely  to  stimulate  fresh 
hunger.  The  disgusting  story  is  even  told  that  the 
imperial  glutton  was  in  the  habit  of  taking  an  emetic 
to  empty  his  stomach,  that  he  might  begin  a  fresh 
course  of  gluttony. 

Certain  artists  in  the  preparation  of  original  dishes 
employed  themselves  in  devising  new  and  appetizing 
compounds  of  food  for  the  table  of  Vitellius.  They 
were  sure  of  an  ample  reward  if  they  should  suc- 
ceed in  pleasing  the  imperial  palate.  Failure,  how- 
ever, was  attended  by  a  severe  penance.  The  artist 
was  not  permitted  to  eat  any  food  but  his  own  un- 
successful dish  until  he  had  atoned  for  his  failure  by 
a  success. 

While  Vitellius  was  thus  sunk  in  sloth  and  glut- 
tony his  destiny  was  on  its  march.  A  terrible  and 
disgraceful  retribution  awaited  him.  He  had  never 
been  emperor  of  all  the  Eoman  empire.  The  army 
of  Syria  had  declared  for  Vespasian,  its  general ;  and 


THE   REIGN   OP  A   GLUTTON.  285 

while  Vitellius  had  been  wasting  his  means  and  ruin- 
ing his  army  by  permitting  it  to  indulge  in  every  vice 
and  excess,  his  rival  in  the  East  was  carefully  lay- 
ing his  plans  to  insure  success.  He  finally  seized 
Alexandria,  thus  being  able  at  will  to  starve  Eome, 
by  cutting  off  its  food-supply;  and  sent  Antonius 
Primus,  his  principal  general,  with  a  strong  force  to 
Italy. 

The  progress  of  Antonius  in  Italy  was  rapid.  City 
after  city  fell  into  his  hands.  The  fleet  at  Ravenna 
declared  for  Vespasian.  The  general  of  Vitellius 
Bought  to  carry  his  whole  army  over  to  Antonius, 
but  found  his  men  more  faithful  than  himself.  The 
Vitellians  were  defeated  in  two  battles;  Cremona 
was  taken  and  destroyed ;  all  was  at  risk ;  and  yet 
Vitellius  remained  absorbed  in  luxury.  "  Hid  in  the 
recess  of  his  garden,  he  indulged  his  appetite,  for- 
getting the  past,  the  present,  and  all  solicitude  about 
future  events;  like  those  nauseous  animals  that 
know  no  care,  and,  while  they  are  supplied  with 
food,  remain  in  one  spot,  torpid  and  insensible." 

At  length  awakened  from  his  stupor,  Vitellius  took 
eome  steps  for  defence.  He  was  too  late.  His  men 
deserted  their  ranks ;  the  army  of  Antonius  steadily 
advanced.  Filled  with  terror,  the  emperor  called  an 
assembly  of  the  people  and  offered  to  resign.  The 
people  in  violent  uproar  refused  to  accept  his  resig- 
nation. He  then  proposed  to  seek  a  retreat  in  his 
brother's  house.  This  the  populace  also  opposed 
and  forced  him  to  return  to  the  palace. 

This  attempted  abdication  brought  civil  war  into 
the  city.  Sabinus,  the  brother  of  Vespasian,  raised 


286  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

a  force  and  took  possession  of  the  Capitol.  He 
besieged  here,  and  in  the  conflict  that  ensued  the 
Capitol  was  set  on  fire  and  burned  to  the  ground. 
It  was  the  second  time  this  venerable  edifice  had 
oeen  consumed  by  the  flames.  Sabinus  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  was  murdered  by  the  mob. 

News  of  this  revolt  and  its  disastrous  end  hastened 
the  march  of  Antonius.  Once  more,  as  in  the  far-off 
days  of  the  Gaulish  invasion,  Rome  was  to  be  at- 
tacked and  taken  by  a  hostile  army.  It  was  assailed 
at  three  points,  each  of  which  was  obstinately  de- 
fen  dg^d-  Finally  an  entrance  was  made  at  the  Col- 
linian  gate,  and  the  battle  was  transferred  to  the 
open  streets,  in  which  the  Vitellians  defended  them- 
selves as  obstinately  as  before. 

And  now  was  seen  an  extraordinary  spectacle. 
While  two  armies — one  from  the  East,  one  from  the 
North — contended  fiercely  for  the  possession  of 
Borne,  the  populace  of  that  city  flocked  to  behold 
the  fight,  as  if  it  was  a  gladiatorial  struggle  got  up 
for  their  diversion,  and  nothing  in  which  they  had 
any  personal  interest.  Tacitus  says, — 

"  Whenever  they  saw  the  advantage  inclining  to 
either  side,  they  favored  the  contestants  with  shouts 
and  theatrical  applause.  If  the  men  fled  from  their 
ranks,  to  take  shelter  in  shops  or  houses,  they  roared 
to  have  them  dragged  forth  and  put  to  death  like 
gladiators  for  their  diversion.  While  the  soldiers 
were  intent  on  slaughter,  these  miscreants  were  em- 
ployed in  plundering.  The  greatest  part  of  the 
booty  fell  to  their  share.  Borne  presented  a  scene 
truly  shocking,  a  medley  of  savage  slaughter  and 


THE  EEIGN   OP   A   GLUTTON.  287 

monstrous  vice ;  in  one  place  war  and  desolation ;  in 
another  bathing,  riot,  and  debauchery.  The  whole 
city  seemed  to  be  inflamed  with  frantic  rage,  and  at 
the  same  time  intoxicated  with  bacchanalian  pleas- 
ures. In  the  midst  of  rage  and  massacre,  pleasure 
knew  no  intermission.  A  dreadful  carnage  seemed 
to  be  a  spectacle  added  to  the  public  games." 

It  was  a  spectacle  certainly  without  its  like  in  the 
history  of  nations. 

The  battle  ended  in  the  complete  overthrow  of 
the  army  of  Vitellius.  The  camp  was  taken,  and 
all  that  defended  it  were  slain.  And  now  took  place 
a  scene  which  recalls  that  of  the  last  days  of  Nero. 
Yitellius,  seeing  that  all  was  lost,  was  in  an  agony 
of  apprehension.  He  left  the  palace  by  a  private 
way  to  seek  shelter  in  his  wife's  house  on  the  Aven- 
tine.  Then  irresolution  brought  him  back  to  the 
palace,  which  he  found  deserted.  The  slaves  had 
fled.  The  dead  silence  that  reigned  filled  him  with 
terror.  All  was  solitude  and  desolation.  He  wan- 
dered pitiably  from  room  to  room,  and  finally,  weary 
and  utterly  wretched,  sought  a  humble  hiding-place. 
Here  he  was  discovered  and  dragged  forth. 

And  now  the  populace,  who  had  lately  refused  his 
deposition,  turned  upon  him  with  the  bitterest  in- 
sults and  contumely.  With  his  hands  bound  behind 
him  and  his  garment  torn,  the  obese  old  glutton  was 
dragged  through  crowds  who  treated  him  with  scoffs 
and  words  of  contempt,  not  a  voice  of  pity  or  sym- 
pathy being  heard.  A  German  soldier  struck  at 
him  with  his  sword,  and,  missing  his  aim,  cut  off  the 
ear  of  a  tribune.  He  was  killed  on  the  spot. 


288  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

As  Vitellius  was  thus  dragged  onward,  his  captors, 
with  swords  pointed  at  his  throat,  forced  him  to  raise 
his  head  and  expose  his  bloated  face  to  scorn  and 
derision.  They  made  him  look  at  his  statues,  which 
were  being  tumbled  to  the  ground.  They  pointed  out 
to  him  the  place  where  Galba  had  perished.  They 
pricked  his  body  with  their  weapons.  With  endless 
contumely  they  brought  him  to  the  public  charnel, 
where  the  body  of  Sabinus  had  been  thrown  among 
those  of  the  vilest  malefactors. 

A  single  expression  is  recorded  as  coming  from  his 
tips.  "  And  yet,"  he  said,  to  a  tribune  who  insulted 
his  misery,  "  I  have  been  your  sovereign." 

His  torment  soon  ended.  The  rabble  fell  on  him 
with  swords  and  clubs  and  he  died  under  a  multitude 
of  wounds.  Even  after  his  death  those  who  had 
worshipped  him  in  the  height  of  his  power  continued 
to  shower  marks  of  rage  and  contempt  upon  his  re- 
mains. Thus  perished  one  of  the  most  despicable  of 
all  the  emperors  who  disgraced  Eome,  to  make  room 
for  one  whose  wisdom  and  virtue  would  make  still 
more  contemptible  the  excesses  of  his  gluttonous 
predecessor. 


THE  FAITHFUL  EPONINA. 

THOUGH  Borne  had  extended  its  conquests  over 
numerous  tribes  and  nations  of  barbarians,  and 
reduced  them  to  subjection,  much  of  the  old  love 
of  liberty  remained,  and  many  of  the  later  Eoman 
wars  were  devoted  to  the  suppression  of  outbreaks 
among  these  unwilling  subjects.  In  the  reign  of 
Vespasian  occurred  such  a  rebellion,  followed  by  so 
remarkable  an  instance  of  womanly  devotion  that  it 
has  since  enlisted  the  sympathy  of  the  world. 

Julius  Sabinus,  a  leading  chief  among  the  Ligones, 
a  tribe  of  the  Gauls,  led  by  ambition  and  daring, 
and  stirred  by  hatred  of  the  Eoman  dominion,  re- 
solved to  shake  oif  the  yoke  of  conquest,  and  by  his 
arts  and  eloquence  kindled  the  flame  of  rebellion 
among  his  countrymen.  Gathering  an  army,  he 
drove  the  Komans  from  the  territory  of  his  own 
people,  and  then  marched  into  the  country  of  the 
Sequani,  whom  he  hoped  to  bring  into  the  revolt. 

But  the  discomfiture  of  the  Eomans  lasted  only 
until  they  could  bring  their  forces  together.  A  battle 
ensued  between  the  hastily-levied  followers  of  Sa- 
binus and  a  disciplined  Eoman  army,  with  the  in- 
evitable result.  The  barbarians  were  defeated  with 
great  slaughter,  the  death  of  most,  the  flight  of  the 
others,  bringing  the  rebellion  to  a  disastrous  end. 
ii.— »  t  25  289 


290  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Sabinus  was  among  those  who  escaped  the  general 
carnage.  He  sought  shelter  from  his  pursuers  in  an 
obscure  cottage,  and,  being  hotly  and  closely  tracked, 
he  set  fire  to  his  lurking-place  and  caused  a  report 
to  be  spread  that  he  had  perished  in  the  flames.  He 
had  been  attended  in  his  flight  by  two  faithful  freed- 
men,  and  one  of  these,  Martialis  by  name,  sought 
Eponina,  the  loving  wife  of  the  chief,  and  told  her 
that  her  husband  was  no  more,  that  he  had  perished 
in  the  flames  of  the  burning  hut. 

Giving  full  credit  to  the  story,  Eponina  was  thrown 
into  a  transport  of  grief  which  went  far  to  convince 
the  spies  of  Rome  that  she  must  have  received  sure 
tidings  of  her  husband's  death,  and  that  Sabinus  had 
escaped  the  vengeance  of  Rome.  For  several  days 
her  grief  continued  unabated,  and  then  the  same 
messenger  returned  and  told  her  that  her  husband 
still  lived,  having  spread  the  report  of  his  death  to 
throw  his  pursuers  off  his  track. 

This  information  brought  Eponina  as  lively  joy  as 
the  former  news  had  brought  her  sorrow ;  but  know- 
ing that  she  was  watched,  she  affected  as  deep  grief 
as  before,  going  about  her  daily  duties  with  all  the 
outward  manifestations  of  woe.  When  night  came 
she  visited  Sabinus  secretly  in  his  new  hiding-place, 
and  was  received  in  his  arms  with  all  the  joy  of 
which  loving  souls  are  capable.  Before  the  dawn 
of  day  she  returned  to  her  home,  from  which  her 
absence  had  not  been  known. 

During  seven  months  the  devoted  wife  continued 
these  clandestine  visits,  softening  by  caresses  and 
brave  words  her  husband's  anxious  care,  and  supply- 


THE   FAITHFUL   EPONINA.  291 

ing  his  wants  as  far  as  she  was  capable.  At  the  end 
of  that  time  she  grew  hopeful  of  obtaining  a  pardon 
for  the  fugitive  chief.  For  this  purpose  she  induced 
him  to  disguise  himself  in  a  way  that  made  detection 
impossible  and  accompany  her  on  a  long  and  painful 
journey  to  Eome. 

Here  the  earnest  and  faithful  woman  made  every 
possible  effort  to  gain  the  ear  and  favor  of  the  em- 
peror and  to  obtain  influence  in  high  places.  She 
unhappily  found  that  Eoman  officials  had  no  time  or 
thought  to  waste  on  fugitive  rebels,  and  that  com- 
passion for  those  who  dared  oppose  the  supremacy 
of  Rome  was  a  sentiment  that  could  find  no  place  in 
the  imperial  heart.  Repelled,  disappointed,  hopeless, 
the  unhappy  woman  and  her  disguised  husband  re- 
traced their  long  and  weary  journey,  and  Sabinus 
again  sought  shelter  in  the  dens  and  caves  which 
formed  his  only  secure  places  of  refuge. 

And  now  the  faithful  wife,  abandoning  her  home, 
joined  him  in  his  lurking-place,  and  for  nine  long 
years  the  devoted  couple  lived  as  homeless  fugitives, 
mutual  love  their  only  comfort,  obtaining  the  neces- 
saries of  life  by  means  of  which  we  are  not  aware. 
By  the  tendered  affection  Eponina  softened  the 
anxieties  of  her  husband,  the  birth  of  two  sons 
served  still  more  to  alleviate  the  misery  of  their  dis- 
tressful situation,  and  all  the  happiness  that  could 
possibly  come  to  two  so  circumstanced  attended  the 
pair  in  their  straitened  place  of  refuge. 

At  the  end  of  nine  years  the  hiding-place  of  the 
fugitives  was  discovered  by  their  enemies,  and  they 
were  seized  and  sent  in  chains  to  Rome.  Here  Ves- 


292  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

pasian,  who  had  gained  a  reputation  for  kindness 
and  clemency,  acted  with  a  cruelty  worthy  of  the 
worst  emperors  of  Rome.  The  pitiable  tale  of  the 
captives  had  no  effect  upon  him  ;  the  devotion  of  the 
wife  roused  no  sympathy  in  his  heart ;  Sabinus  had 
dared  rebel  against  Rome,  no  time  nor  circumstance 
could  soften  that  flagitious  crime ;  without  hesita- 
tion the  chief  was  condemned  to  death,  and  instant 
execution  ordered. 

This  cruel  sentence  changed  the  tone  of  Eponina. 
She  had  hitherto  humbly  and  warmly  supplicated 
her  husband's  pardon.  Now  that  he  was  dead  she 
resolved  not  to  survive  him.  With  the  spirit  and 
pride  of  a  free-born  princess  she  said  to  Vespasian, 
"  Death  has  no  terror  for  me.  I  have  lived  happier 
underground  than  you  upon  your  throne.  You  have 
robbed  me  of  all  I  loved,  and  I  have  no  further  use  for 
life.  Bid  your  assassins  strike  their  blow  ;  with  joy 
I  leave  a  world  which  is  peopled  by  such  tyrants  as 
you." 

She  was  taken  at  her  word  and  ordered  by  the 
emperor  for  execution.  It  was  the  darkest  deed  of 
Vespasian's  life,  a  blot  upon  his  character  which  all 
his  record  for  clemency  cannot  remove,  and  which 
has  ever  since  lain  as  a  dark  stain  upon  his  memory. 

Plutarch,  who  has  alone  told  this  story  of  love 
unto  death,  concludes  his  tale  by  saying  that  there 
was  nothing  during  Vespasian's  reign  to  match  the 
horror  of  this  atrocious  deed,  and  that,  in  retribu- 
tion for  it,  the  vengeance  of  the  gods  fell  upon  Ves- 
pasian, and  in  a  short  time  after  wrought  the  extir- 
pation of  his  entire  family. 


THE  SIEGE   OF  JERUSALEM. 

CHRIST  had  not  long  passed  away  from  the  earth 
when  the  reign  of  peace  and  brotherly  love  which 
He  had  so  warmly  inculcated  ceased  to  exist  on  the 
soil  of  Judaea.  Forty  years  after  He  foretold  the  de- 
struction of  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem  that  noble  edi- 
fice had  ceased  to  exist,  Jerusalem  itself  was  burned 
to  the  ground,  and  a  million  of  people  perished  by 
sword  and  flames.  It  is  this  lamentable  tale  which 
we  have  now  to  tell. 

Caligula,  the  mad  emperor,  first  roused  the  indig- 
nation of  the  Jews,  by  demanding  that  his  statue 
should  be  placed  in  that  holy  shrine  in  which  no 
image  of  man  had  ever  been  permitted.  War  would 
have  followed,  for  the  Jews  were  resolute  against 
such  an  impious  desecration  of  their  Temple,  had  not 
the  sword  of  the  assassin  removed  the  tyrant. 

But  the  discontent  of  the  Jews  was  not  ended. 
They  were  resolved  that  no  image  of  the  Caesars 
should  be  brought  into  their  land,  and  carried  this  so 
far  that  when  the  governor  of  Syria  wished  to  march 
through  a  part  of  their  territory  to  attack  the  Arabs, 
they  objected  that  the  standards  of  the  legions  were 
crowded  with  profane  images,  which  their  sacred 
laws  did  not  permit  to  be  seen  in  their  country.  The 
25*  293 


294  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

governor  yielded  to  their  remonstrance,  and  marched 
around  the  land  of  Judsea. 

This  concession  did  not  allay  the  discontent.  Felix, 
a  governor  under  Claudius,  by  oppression  and  cruelty 
aroused  a  general  spirit  of  revolt.  Gessius  Florus, 
appointed  by  Nero  governor  of  Judsea,  found  his 
province  in  a  state  of  irritation  and  tumult.  His 
avarice  and  robbery  of  the  people  ripened  this  to 
war.  The  province  broke  into  open  rebellion.  It 
was  quickly  invaded  by  Gallus,  the  governor  of 
Syria,  who  marched  through  the  country  to  the  walls 
of  Jerusalem.  But  he  was  not  a  soldier,  and  was 
quickly  forced  to  abandon  the  siege  and  retreat  in 
haste,  losing  six  thousand  men  in  his  flight. 

Nero  now,  finding  that  Eome  had  an  obstinate 
struggle  on  its  hands,  chose  Vespasian,  a  soldier  of 
renown,  to  conduct  the  war.  This  he  did  with  the 
true  Roman  energy  and  thoroughness,  subduing  the 
whole  country,  and  capturing  every  stronghold  ex- 
cept Jerusalem,  within  two  years.  He  was  called 
from  this  work  to  the  struggle  for  the  empire  of 
Borne,  leaving  his  able  son  Titus  to  complete  the 
task. 

The  taking  of  Jerusalem  was  not  to  be  easily  per- 
formed. The  city  was  of  immense  strength.  It 
stood  upon  two  hills,  Mount  Sion  to  the  south,  Mount 
Acra  to  the  north.  The  former,  being  the  loftiest, 
was  called  the  upper,  and  Acra  the  lower,  city.  Each 
of  these  hills  was  surrounded  by  a  wall  of  great 
strength  and  elevation,  their  bases  washed  by  a  rapid 
stream  that  ran  through  the  valleys  of  Hinnom  and 
Cedron,  to  the  foot  of  the  Mount  of  Olives.  A  third 


THE   SIEQE   OF   JERUSALEM.  295 

hill,  Mount  Moriah,  was  the  seat  of  the  famous  Tem- 
ple, an  immense  group  of  courts  and  edifices  which 
looked  more  like  a  citadel  than  a  sanctuary  of  re- 
ligious faith.  The  true  temple  stood  separate,  in  the 
midst  of  these  buildings,  its  interior  being  divided  by 
a  curtain  into  two  parts,  of -which  the  inmost  was 
the  Holy  of  Holies.  The  total  group  of  edifices  was 
nearly  a  mile  in  circumference. 

Jerusalem,  unfortunately  for  its  defence,  had, 
during  the  conquest  of  the  country,  become  filled 
with  fugitives.  To  these  the  celebration  of  the  Pass- 
over, now  at  hand,  added  other  great  numbers,  so 
that  when  the  army  of  Titus  invested  it,  it  was 
crowded  with  a  vast  multitude  of  human  beings. 
Filled  with  religious  enthusiasm,  accustomed  to  war, 
and  believing  that  the  Lord  of  Hosts  would  come  to 
their  aid,  the  garrison  displayed  a  desperate  resolu- 
tion that  the  Eomans  were  to  find  very  difficult  to 
overcome. 

Yet  it  was  as  much  due  to  themselves  as  to  the 
Eoman  arms  that  the  city  at  length  fell.  Resolute 
as  the  Jews  were  in  defence  against  the  foreign  foe, 
they  were  divided  among  themselves,  the  city  being 
held  by  three  factions  bitterly  hostile  to  each  other. 
One  of  these,  known  as  the  Zealots,  under  Eleazer, 
held  the  Temple.  Another,  under  John  of  Grisela,  an 
artful  orator  but  a  man  of  infamous  character,  occu- 
pied another  portion  of  the  city.  A  third,  whose 
leader  was  named  Simon,  a  man  known  for  crime  and 
courage,  held  still  another  section.  These  three 
parties  kept  Jerusalem  in  tumult.  There  were  fero- 
cious battles  in  the  streets ;  houses  were  plundered, 


296  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

families  slain,  and  when  Titus  encamped  before  the 
walls,  he  had  before  him  a  city  distracted  by  civil 
war  and  its  streets  filled  with  blood  and  carnage. 

The  story  of  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  is  far  too  long 
a  one  to  be  told  in  detail.  Several  times  during  the 
siege  Titus  offered  terms  of  pardon  and  amnesty  to 
the  besieged,  but  all  in  vain.  Divided  as  they  were 
among  themselves,  they  were  united  in  hostility  to 
Borne.  The  siege  began  and  proceeded  with  the 
usual  energy  shown  by  a  Eoman  army.  Mounds 
were  erected,  forts  built,  warlike  engines  constructed. 
Darts  and  other  weapons  were  rained  into  the  city, 
great  stones  were  flung  from  engines,  every  resource 
known  to  ancient  war  was  practised.  A  breach 
was  at  length  made  in  the  walls,  the  soldiers  rushed 
in,  sword  in  hand,  and  the  section  of  the  city 
known  as  Salem  was  captured.  Five  days  after- 
wards Bezetha,  a  hill  to  the  north  of  the  Temple,  was 
taken  by  Titus,  but  he  was  here  so  furiously  assailed 
by  the  garrison  that  he  was  forced  to  retreat  to  his 
camp. 

Some  days  of  quiet  now  followed,  while  the  Ro- 
mans prepared  for  a  second  attack.  The  factions 
in  the  city,  fancying  that  their  foes  had  withdrawn 
in  despair,  at  once  resumed  their  feuds,  and  the 
streets  again  ran  with  blood.  John  invaded  the 
Temple  precincts,  overcame  the  party  of  Eleazer, 
and  a  general  massacre  followed  which  desecrated 
with  slaughter  every  part  of  the  holy  place. 

Soon  the  Romans  advanced  again,  and  the  two 
remaining  factions  united  in  defence.  Now  the 
Romans  penetrated  the  city,  now  they  were  driven 


THE    SIEGE   OF   JERUSALEM.  297 

out  in  a  fierce  charge,  and  their  camp  nearly  taken. 
And  now  famine  came  to  add  to  the  horrors  of  the 
siege,  and  made  frightful  havoc  in  the  dense  multi- 
tude with  which  every  part  of  the  city  was  thronged. 
The  dead  and  dying  filled  the  streets,  the  wounded 
soldiers  perished  of  starvation,  groans  and  lamenta- 
tions resounded  in  every  quarter ;  to  rid  themselves 
of  the  hosts  of  dead  John  and  Simon  had  them 
thrown  from  the  walls,  to  fester  in  heaps  before  the 
Roman  works.  Among  the  scenes  of  horror  related, 
a  woman  was  seen  to  kill  and  devour  her  own  infant 
child. 

At  length  the  Romans  made  such  progress  that  all 
the  city  was  theirs  except  the  Temple  enclosure,  into 
which  the  remainder  of  the  garrison  had  gathered. 
Titus  wished  to  save  this  famous  structure,  and  made 
a  last  effort  to  end  the  siege  by  peaceful  measures. 
Josephus,  the  Jewish  historian,  who  had  been  taken 
prisoner  during  the  war,  and  was  now  in  his  camp, 
was  sent  into  the  city,  with  an  offer  of  amnesty  if 
they  would  even  now  yield.  The  offer  was  refused, 
and  Titus  saw  that  but  one  thing  remained. 

On  the  next  day  the  assault  on  Mount  Moriah 
began.  The  Jews  fought  with  fierce  courage,  but 
the  close  lines  and  steady  discipline  of  the  legions 
prevailed.  The  defenders,  after  a  bitter  resistance, 
were  forced  back  ;  the  assailants  furiously  pursued ; 
the  inner  court  of  the  Temple  was  entered ;  in  the 
uproar  of  the  furious  strife  the  orders  of  Titus  and 
his  officers  to  save  the  Temple  were  unheard ;  all  was 
tumult,  the  roar  of  battle,  the  shedding  of  blood. 
The  Jews  fought  with  frantic  obstinacy,  but  their 


298  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

undisciplined  valor  failed  to  affect  the  steady  disci- 
pline or  break  the  close  array  of  the  legions.  Many 
fled  in  despair  to  the  sanctuary.  Here  were  gathered 
priests  and  prophets,  who  still  declared  the  Lord  of 
Hosts  was  on  their  side,  and  that  He  would  protect 
His  holy  seat. 

Even  while  these  assurances  were  being  given  the 
assailants  forced  the  gates.  The  eyes  of  the  ava- 
ricious Komans  rested  on  the  golden  and  glittering 
ornaments  of  the  Temple,  and  they  sought  more 
fiercely  than  ever  to  hew  their  way  through  flesh  and 
blood  to  these  alluring  treasures.  One  soldier,  fran- 
tic with  the  fury  of  the  fight,  snatched  a  flaming 
ember  from  some  burning  materials,  and,  lifted  by  a 
comrade,  set  fire  to  a  gilded  window  of  the  Temple. 
Almost  in  an  instant  the  flames  flared  upward,  and 
the  despairing  Jews  saw  that  their  holy  house  was 
doomed.  A  great  groan  of  agony  burst  from  their 
lips.  Many  occupied  themselves  in  vain  efforts  to 
quench  the  flames;  others  flung  themselves  in  de- 
spairing rage  on  the  Komans,  heedless  of  life  now 
that  all  they  lived  for  was  perishing. 

Titus,  on  learning  what  had  been  done,  ran  in  all 
haste  to  the  scene,  and  loudly  ordered  the  soldiers  to 
extinguish  the  flames,  signalling  to  the  same  effect 
with  his  hand.  But  his  voice  was  drowned  in  the 
uproar  and  his  signals  were  not  understood,  while 
the  thirst  for  plunder  carried  the  soldiers  beyond  all 
restraint.  The  holy  place  of  the  Temple  was  still  in- 
tact. This  Titus  entered,  and  was  so  impressed  with 
its  beauty  and  splendor  that  he  made  a  strenuous 
effort  to  save  it  from  destruction.  In  vain  he  begged 


THE   SIEGE   OP   JERUSALEM. 

and  threatened.  While  some  of  the  soldiery  tore 
with  wolfish  fury  at  its  gold,  others  fired  its  gates, 
and  soon  the  Holy  of  Holies  itself  was  in  a  blaze, 
and  the  whole  Temple  wrapped  in  devouring  flames. 

The  rapacious  soldiers  raged  through  the  build- 
ings, rending  from  them  everything  of  value  which 
the  fire  had  left  untouched.  The  defenders  fell  by 
thousands.  Great  numbers  perished  in  the  flames. 
A  multitude  of  fugitives,  including  women  and  chil- 
dren, sought  refuge  in  the  outer  cloisters.  These 
were  set  on  fire  by  the  furious  soldiers,  and  thou- 
sands were  swept  away  by  the  pitiless  hand  of  death. 
Word  was  brought  to  Titus  that  a  number  of  priests 
stood  on  the  outside  wall,  begging  for  their  lives. 
"  It  is  too  late,"  he  replied ;  "  the  priests  ought  not 
to  survive  their  temple."  Eetiring  to  an  outer  fort, 
he  gazed  with  deep  regret  on  the  devouring  confla- 
gration, saying,  "  The  God  of  the  Jews  has  fought 
against  them  :  to  him  we  owe  our  victory." 

Thus  perished  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem,  a  magnifi- 
cent structure,  for  ages  the  pride  and  glory  of  the 
Jews.  First  erected  by  Solomon,  eleven  centuries 
before,  it  was  burnt  by  the  Babylonians  five  hundred 
years  afterwards.  It  was  rebuilt  by  Haggai,  in  the 
reign  of  King  Cyrus  of  Persia,  and  had  now  stood 
more  than  six  hundred  years,  enlarged  and  adorned 
from  time  to  time.  But  Christ  had  said,  "  There  shall 
not  be  left  one*  stone  upon  another  that  shall  not  be 
thrown  down."  This  prophetic  utterance  was  now 
fulfilled.  Thenceforward  there  was  no  Temple  of 
the  Jews. 

But  more  fighting  remained.    The  defenders  made 


300  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

their  way  into  the  upper  city  on  Mount  Sion,  and 
here  held  out  bitterly  still,  rejecting  the  terms 
offered  them  by  Titus  of  unconditional  surrender. 
The  place  was  strong,  and  defended  by  towers  that 
were  almost  impregnable.  Better  terms  might  have 
been  extorted  from  Titus  had  John  and  Simon,  the 
leaders  of  the  party  of  defence,  been  as  brave  as 
they  were  blatant.  But  after  refusing  surrender 
they  lost  heart,  and  hid  themselves  in  subterranean 
vaults,  leaving  their  deluded  followers  to  their  own 
devices.  The  end  came  soon.  A  breach  was  made 
in  the  walls.  The  legions  entered,  sword  in  hand, 
and  with  the  rage  of  slaughter  in  heart.  A  dread- 
ful carnage  followed.  Neither  sex  nor  age  was 
spared.  According  to  Josephus,  not  less  than  one 
million  one  hundred  thousand  persons  perished  dur- 
ing this  terrible  siege.  Of  those  that  remained  alive 
the  most  flagrant  were  put  to  death,  some  were  re- 
served to  grace  the  victor's  triumph,  and  the  others 
were  sent  to  Egypt  to  be  sold  as  slaves.  As  for  the 
city,  it  had  been  in  great  part  consumed  by  flames. 
Thus  ended  the  rebellion  of  the  Jews.  To  rule  or 
ruin  was  the  terrible  motto  of  Borne. 


THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  POMPEII. 

ON  the  eastern  margin  of  the  Bay  of  Naples, 
where  it  serves  as  a  striking  background  to  the  city 
of  that  name,  stands  the  renowned  Vesuvius,  the 
most  celebrated  volcano  in  the  world.  During  many 
centuries  before  the  Christian  era  it  had  been  a  dead 
and  silent  mountain.  Throughout  the  earlier  period 
of  Eoman  history  the  people  of  Campania  treated  it 
with  the  contempt  of  ignorance,  planting  their  vine- 
yards on  its  fertile  slopes  and  building  their  towns 
and  villages  around  its  base.  Under  the  shadow  of 
the  silent  mountain  armies  met  and  fought,  and  its 
crater  was  made  the  fort  and  lurking-place  of  Spar- 
tacus  and  his  party  of  gladiators.  But  the  time  was 
at  hand  in  which  a  more  terrible  enemy  than  a  band 
of  vengeful  rebels  was  to  emerge  from  that  threat- 
ening cavity. 

The  sleeping  giant  first  showed  signs  of  waking 
from  his  long  slumber  in  63  A.D.,  when  earthquake 
convulsions  shook  the  surrounding  lands.  These 
tremblings  of  the  earth  continued  at  intervals  for 
sixteen  years,  doing  much  damage.  At  length,  on 
the  24th  of  August  of  the  year  79,  came  the  culmi- 
nating event.  With  a  tremendous  and  terrible  ex. 
plosion  the  whole  top  of  the  mountain  was  torn  out, 

26  301 


302  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

and  vast  clouds  of  steam  and  volcanic  ashes  were 
hurled  high  into  the  air,  lit  into  lurid  light  by  the 
crimson  gleams  of  the  boiling  lava  below. 

The  scene  was  a  frightful  one.  The  vast,  tree- 
like cloud,  kindled  throughout  its  length  by  almost 
incessant  flashes  of  lightning ;  the  fiery  glare  that 
gleamed  upward  from  the  glowing  lava;  the  total 
darkness  that  overspread  the  surrounding  country 
as  the  dense  mass  of  volcanic  dust  floated  outward, 
a  darkness  only  relieved  by  the  glare  that  attended 
each  new  explosion,  formed  a  spectacle  of  terror  to 
make  the  stoutest  heart  quail,  and  to  fill  the  weak 
and  ignorant  with  dread  of  a  final  overthrow  of  the 
earth  and  its  inhabitants. 

The  elder  Pliny,  the  famous  naturalist,  was  then 
in  command  of  a  fleet  at  Misenum,  in  the  vicinity. 
Led  by  his  scientific  interest,  he  approached  the  vol- 
cano to  examine  the  eruption  more  closely,  and  fell 
a  victim  to  the  falling  ashes  or  the  choking  fumes 
of  sulphur  that  filled  the  air.  His  nephew,  Pliny 
the  younger,  then  only  a  boy  of  eighteen,  has  given 
a  lucid  account  of  what  took  place,  in  letters  to  the 
historian  Tacitus.  After  describing  the  journey  and 
death  of  his  uncle,  he  goes  on  to  speak  of  the  vio- 
lent earthquakes  that  shook  the  ground  during  the 
night.  He  continues  with  the  story  of  the  next 
day: 

"  Though  it  was  now  morning,  the  light  was  ex- 
ceedingly faint  and  languid ;  the  buildings  all  around 
us  tottered,  and  though  we  stood  upon  open  ground, 
yet,  as  the  place  was  narrow  and  confined,  there  was 
no  remaining  there  without  certain  and  great  dan- 


THE    DESTRUCTION   OP    POMPEII.  303 

ger ;  we  therefore  resolved  to  leave  the  town.  The 
people  followed  us  in  the  utmost  consternation,  and, 
as  to  a  mind  distracted  with  terror  every  suggestion 
seems  more  prudent  than  its  own,  pressed  in  great 
crowds  about  us  in  our  way  out. 

"Being  got  at  a  convenient  distance  from  the 
houses,  we  stood  still,  in  the  midst  of  a  most  dan- 
gerous and  dreadful  scene.  The  chariots  which  we 
had  ordered  to  be  drawn  out  were  so  agitated  back- 
ward and  forward,  though  upon  the  most  level 
ground,  that  we  could  not  keep  them  steady,  even 
by  supporting  them  with  large  stones.  The  sea 
seemed  to 'roll  back  upon  itself,  and  to  be  driven 
from  its  banks  by  the  convulsive  motion  of  the 
earth ;  it  is  certain,  at  least,  that  the  shore  was  con- 
siderably enlarged,  and  several  sea-animals  were  left 
upon  it.  At  the  other  side  a  black  and  dreadful 
cloud,  bursting  with  an  igneous  serpentine  vapor, 
darted  out  a  long  train  of  fire,  resembling  flashes  of 
lightning,  but  much  larger.  .  .  . 

"  Soon  afterwards  the  cloud  seemed  to  descend 
and  cover  the  whole  ocean,  as  indeed  it  entirely  hid 
the  island  of  Capreae  and  the  promontory  of  Mise- 
num.  My  mother  strongly  conjured  me  to  make  my 
escape  at  any  rate,  which,  as  1  was  young,  I  might 
easily  do ;  as  for  herself,  she  said,  her  age  and  corpu- 
lence rendered  all  attempts  of  that  sort  impossible. 
However,  she  would  willingly  meet  death  if  she 
could  have  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  that  she  was 
not  the  occasion  of  mine.  But  I  absolutely  refused 
to  leave  herj  and,  taking  her  by  the  hand,  I  led  her 
on;  she  complied  with  great  reluctance,  and  not 


304  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

without  many  reproaches  to  herself  for  retarding 
my  flight. 

"  The  ashes  now  began  to  fall  on  us,  though  in  no 
great  quantity.  I  turned  my  head,  and  observed 
behind  us  a  thick  smoke,  which  came  rolling  after 
us  like  a  torrent.  I  proposed,  while  we  yet  had  any 
light,  to  turn  out  of  the  high-road,  lest  she  should 
be  pressed  to  death  in  the  dark  by  the  crowd  that 
followed  us.  We  had  scarce  stepped  out  of  the 
path  when  darkness  overspread  us,  not  like  that  of 
a  cloudy  night  or  when  there  is  no  moon,  but  of  a 
room  when  it  is  shut  up  and  all  the  lights  extinct. 
Nothing  then  was  to  be  heard  but  the  shrieks  of 
women,  the  screams  of  children,  and  the  cries  of 
men ;  some  calling  for  their  children,  others  for  their 
parents,  others  for  their  husbands,  and  only  distin- 
guishing each  other  by  their  voices ;  one  lamenting 
his  own  fate,  another  that  of  his  family;  some  wish- 
ing to  die  from  the  very  fear  of  dying ;  some  lifting 
their  hands  to  the  gods;  but  the  greater  part  im- 
agining that  the  last  and  eternal  night  was  come, 
which  was  to  destroy  the  gods  and  the  world  to- 
gether. 

"  Among  these  were  some  who  augmented  the  real 
terrors  by  imaginary  ones,  and  made  the  frightened 
multitude  falsely  believe  that  Misenum  was  in  flames. 
At  length  a  glimmering  light  appeared,  which  we 
imagined  to  be  rather  the  forerunner  of  an  approach- 
ing burst  of  flames,  as  in  truth  it  was,  than  the  re- 
turn of  day.  However,  the  fire  fell  at  a  distance 
from  us;  then  again  we  were  immersed  in  thick 
darkness,  and  a  heavy  shower  of  ashes  rained  upon 


THE   DESTRUCTION    OF   POMPEII.  305 

us,  which  we  were  obliged  every  now  and  then  to 
shake  off,  otherwise  we  should  have  been  crushed 
and  buried  in  the  heap.  I  might  boast  that  during 
all  this  scene  of  horror  not  a  sigh  or  expression  of 
fear  escaped  from  me,  had  not  my  support  been 
found  in  that  miserable,  though  strong,  consolation, 
that  all  mankind  were  involved  in  the  same  calamity, 
and  that  I  imagined  I  was  perishing  with  the  world 
itself. 

"  At  last  this  dreadful  darkness  was  dissipated  by 
degrees,  like  a  cloud  of  smoke;  the  real  day  re- 
turned, and  even  the  sun  appeared,  though  very 
faintly,  and  as  when  an  eclipse  is  coming  on.  Every 
object  that  presented  itself  to  our  eyes  seemed 
changed,  being  covered  over  with  white  ashes,  as 
with  a  deep  snow." 

This  graphic  story  repeats  the  experience  of  thou- 
sands on  that  fatal  occasion,  in  which  great  numbers 
perished,  while  many  lost  their  all.  Villas  of  wealthy 
Eomans  were  numerous  in  the  vicinity  of  the  vol- 
cano, while  among  the  several  towns  which  sur- 
rounded it  three  were  utterly  destroyed, — Pompeii, 
Herculaneum,  and  Stabiee.  Of  these  much  the  most 
famous  is  Pompeii,  which,  being  buried  in  ashes,  has 
proved  far  easier  of  exploration  than  Herculaneum, 
which  was  overwhelmed  with  torrents  of  mud, 
caused  by  heavy  rains  on  the  volcanic  ash. 

Pompeii  was  an  old  town,  built  more  than  six 
hundred  years  before,  and  occupied  at  the  time  of 
its  destruction  by  the  aristocracy  of  Rome.  Tri- 
umphal arches  were  erected  there  in  honor  of  Ca- 
ligula and  Nero,  who  probably  honored  it  by  visits. 
ii.— u  26* 


306  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

It  possessed  costly  temples,  handsome  theatres  and 
other  public  buildings,  luxurious  residences,  and  all 
the  ostentatious  magnificence  arising  from  the 
wealth  of  the  proud  patricians  of  Eome. 

What  Pompeii  was  in  its  best  days  we  are  not 
now  able  to  estimate.  It  was  essentially,  in  its  ar- 
chitecture, a  Greek  city,  rich  and  artistic,  gay  and 
luxurious.  But  on  February  5,  63  A.D.,  came  the 
first  of  the  long  series  of  earthquakes,  and  when  it 
ended  nearly  all  of  old  Pompeii  was  levelled  with 
the  ground.  It  was  not  yet  a  lost  city,  but  was  a 
thoroughly  ruined  one.  In  the  years  that  followed 
it  was  rapidly  rebuilt,  Eoman  architecture  and  dec- 
oration, of  often  tawdry  and  inferior  character,  re- 
placing the  chaste  and  artistic  Greek.  Once  more 
the  city  became  a  centre  of  gayety,  ostentation,  and 
licentiousness,  when,  in  79  A.D.,  the  eruption  of  Vesu- 
vius came,  and  the  overwhelming  storm  of  ashes 
came  down  like  a  thick-descending  fall  of  snow  on 
the  doomed  city. 

The  description  given  by  Pliny  relates  to  a  less 
endangered  point.  Upon  Pompeii  the  ashes  settled 
down  in  seemingly  unending  volumes,  continuing 
for  three  days,  during  which  all  was  enveloped  in 
darkness  and  gloom.  The  citizens  fled  in  terror, 
such  as  were  able  to,  though  many  perished  and 
were  buried  deep  in  their  ruined  homes.  On  the 
fourth  day  the  sun  began  to  reappear,  as  if  shining 
through  a  fog,  and  the  bolder  fugitives  returned  in 
search  of  their  lost  property. 

What  they  saw  must  have  been  frightfully  dis- 
heartening. Where  the  busy  city  had  stood  was 


THE   DESTRUCTION   OP   POMPEII.  307 

now  a  level  plain  of  white  ashes,  so  deep  that  not  a 
house-top  could  be  seen,  and  only  the  upper  walls 
of  the  great  theatre  and  the  amphitheatre  were 
visible.  Digging  into  the  fleecy  ashes,  many  of 
them  recovered  articles  of  value,  while  thieves  also 
may  have  reaped  a  rich  harvest.  The  emperor 
Titus  even  undertook  to  clear  and  rebuild  the  city, 
but  soon  abandoned  the  task  as  too  costly  a  one,  and 
for  many  centuries  afterwards  Pompeii  remained 
buried  in  mud  and  ashes,  lost  to  the  world,  its  site 
forgotten,  and  the  forms  of  many  of  its  old  inhabi- 
tants preserved  intact  in  the  bed  of  ashes  in  which 
they  had  perished. 

It  was  only  in  1748  that  its  site  was  recognized, 
and  only  since  1860  has  there  been  a  systematic 
effort  to  dig  the  old  city  out  of  its  grave.  At  pres- 
ent nearly  one-half — the  most  important  half — of 
Pompeii  has  been  laid  bare,  and  we  are  able  to  see 
for  ourselves  how  the  Eomans  lived.  The  narrow 
streets,  fourteen  to  twenty-four  feet  wide,  are  well 
paved  with  blocks  of  lava,  which  are  cut  into  deep 
ruts  by  the  wheels  of  chariots  that  rolled  over 
them  two  thousand  years  ago.  On  each  side  rise  the 
walls  of  houses,  two,  and  sometimes  three,  stories 
in  height,  and  some  of  them  richly  painted  and 
adorned,  while  walls  and  columns  are  brightly 
painted  in  red,  blue,  and  yellow,  which  must  have 
given  the  old  city  a  gay  and  festive  hue. 

The  ornaments,  articles  of  furniture,  and  domestic 
utensils  found  in  these  houses  go  far  to  teach  us  the 
modes  of  life  in  Eoman  times,  and  reveal  to  us  that 
the  Romans  possessed  many  comforts  and  conven- 


308  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ionces  for  which  we  had  not  given  them  credit. 
Even  the  forms  of  the  inhabitants  have  in  many 
cases  been  recovered.  Though  these  forms  have 
long  vanished,  the  hollows  made  by  their  bodies  in 
the  hardened  ashes  in  which  they  lay  and  slowly 
decayed  have  remained  unchanged,  and  by  pouring 
liquid  plaster  of  Paris  into  these  cavities  perfect 
casts  have  been  obtained,  showing  the  exact  shape 
of  face  and  body,  and  even  every  fold  of  the  clothes 
of  these  victims  of  Vesuvius  eighteen  hundred  years 
ago.  They  are  not  altogether  pleasant  to  see,  for 
the}7  express  the  agony  of  those  caught  in  the  swift 
descending  death  of  the  falling  volcanic  shroud,  but 
as  tenants  of  an  archaeological  museum  they  stand 
unrivalled  in  lifelike  fidelity. 

Herculaneum,  which  was  buried  to  a  depth  of 
from  forty  to  one  hundred  feet,  and  with  wet  ma- 
terial which  has  grown  much  harder  than  the  ashes 
of  Pompeii,  has  been  but  little  explored.  It  was  the 
larger  and  more  important  city  of  the  two,  while 
none  of  its  treasures  could  have  been  recovered  by 
their  owners.  The  art  relics  found  there  far  exceed 
in  interest  and  value  those  of  Pompeii,  but  the  work 
is  so  difficult  that  as  yet  very  little  has  been  done  in 
the  task  of  restoring  this  "  dead  city  of  Campania" 
to  the  light  of  the  modern  day. 


EQUESTRIAN  STATUE  OF  MARCUS  AURELIUS. 


AN  IMPERIAL  SAVAGE. 

WE  have  now  reached  the  period  in  which  began 
the  decline  and  fall  of  the  Roman  empire.  Its  story 
is  crowded  with  events,  but  lacks  those  dramatic  and 
romantic  incidents  which  give  such  interest  to  the 
history  of  early  Rome.  Now  good  emperors  ruled, 
now  bad  ones  followed,  now  peace  prevailed,  now 
war  raged ;  the  story  grows  monotonous  as  we  ad- 
vance. The  reigns  of  virtuous  emperors  yield  much 
to  commend  but  little  to  describe ;  those  of  wicked 
emperors  repel  us  by  their  enormities  and  disgust  us 
by  their  follies.  We  must  end  our  tales  with  a  few 
selections  from  the  long  and  somewhat  dreary  list. 

After  Vespasian  came  to  the  throne,  a  period  of 
nearly  two  centuries  elapsed  during  most  of  which 
Rome  was  governed  by  men  of  virtue  and  ability, 
though  cursed  for  a  time  by  the  reigns  of  the  cruel 
Domitian,  the  dissolute  Commodus,  the  base  Cara- 
calla,  and  the  foolish  Blagabalus.  Fortunately,  none 
of  the  monsters  who  disgraced  the  empire  reigned 
long.  Assassination  purified  the  throne.  The  total 
length  of  reign  of  the  cruel  monarchs  of  Rome 
covered  no  long  space  of  time,  though  they  occupy  a 
great  space  in  history. 

We  have  now  to  tell  how  the  patrician  families  of 

309 


310  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Eome  lost  their  hold  upon  the  throne,  and  a  barbarian 
peasant  became  lord  and  master  of  this  vast  empire, 
of  which  his  ancestors  of  a  few  generations  before 
had  perhaps  scarcely  heard.  The  story  is  an  inter- 
esting one,  and  well  worth  repeating. 

Just  after  the  year  200  A.D.  the  emperor  Septimius 
Severus,  father  of  the  notorious  Caracalla,  while 
returning  from  an  expedition  to  the  East,  halted  in 
Thrace  to  celebrate,  with  military  games,  the  birth- 
day of  Greta,  his  youngest  son.  The  spectacle  was 
an  enticing  one,  and  the  country-people  for  many 
miles  round  gathered  in  crowds  to  gaze  upon  their 
sovereign  and  behold  the  promised  sports. 

Among  those  who  came  was  a  young  barbarian  of 
such  gigantic  stature  and  great  muscular  develop- 
ment as  to  excite  the  attention  of  all  who  saw  him. 
In  a  rude  dialect,  which  those  who  heard  could 
barely  understand,  he  asked  if  he  might  take  part 
in  the  wrestling  exercises  and  contend  for  the  prize. 
This  the  officers  would  not  permit.  For  a  Eoman 
soldier  to  be  overthrown  by  a  Thracian  peasant,  as 
seemed  likely  to  be  the  result,  would  be  a  disgrace 
not  to  be  risked.  But  he  might  try,  if  he  would, 
with  the  camp  followers,  some  of  the  stoutest  of 
whom  were  chosen  to  contend  with  him.  Of  these 
he  laid  no  less  than  sixteen,  in  succession,  on  the 
ground. 

Here  was  a  man  worth  having  in  the  ranks.  Some 
gifts  were  given  him,  and  he  was  told  that  he  might 
enlist,  if  he  chose ;  a  privilege  he  was  quick  to  accept. 
The  next  day  the  peasant,  happy  in  the  thought  of 
being  a  soldier,  was  seen  among  a  crowd  of  recruits, 


AN   IMPERIAL   SAVAGE.  311 

dancing  and  exulting  in  rustic  fashion,  while  his  head 
towered  above  them  all. 

The  emperor,  who  was  passing  in  the  march,  looked 
at  him  with  interest  and  approval,  and  as  he  rode  on- 
ward the  new  recruit  ran  up  to  his  horse,  and  followed 
him  on  foot  during  a  long  and  rapid  journey  without 
the  least  appearance  of  fatigue. 

This  remarkable  endurance  astonished  Severus. 
"Thracian,"  he  said,  "are  you  prepared  to  wrestle 
after  your  race  ?". 

"  Eeady  and  willing,"  answered  the  youth,  with 
alacrity. 

Some  of  the  strongest  soldiers  of  the  army  were 
now  selected  and  pitted  against  him,  and  he  over- 
threw seven  of  them  in  rapid  succession.  The  em- 
peror, delighted  with  this  matchless  display  of  vigor 
and  agility,  presented  him  with  a  golden  collar  in 
reward,  and  ordered  that  he  should  be  placed  in  the 
horse-guards  that  formed  his  personal  escort. 

The  new  recruit,  Maximin  by  name,  was  a  true 
barbarian,  though  born  in  the  empire.  His  father 
was  a  Goth,  his  mother  of  the  nation  of  the  Alani. 
But  he  had  judgment  and  shrewdness,  and  a  valor 
equal  to  his  strength,  and  soon  advanced  in  the  favor 
of  the  emperor,  who  was  a  good  judge  of  merit. 
Fierce  and  impetuous  by  nature,  experience  of  the 
world  taught  him  to  restrain  these  qualities,  and  he 
advanced  in  position  until  he  attained  the  rank  of 
centurion. 

After  the  death  of  Severus  the  Thracian  served 
with  equal  fidelity  under  his  son  Caracalla,  whose 
favor  and  esteem  he  won.  During  the  short  reign 


312  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

of  the  profligate  and  effeminate  Elagabalus,  Maximin 
withdrew  from  the  ceurt,  but  he  returned  when 
Alexander  Severus,  one  of  the  noblest  of  Roman 
emperors,  came  to  the  throne.  The  new  monarch 
was  familiar  with  his  ability  and  the  incidents  of 
his  unusual  career,  and  raised  him  to  the  responsible 
post  of  tribune  of  the  fourth  legion,  which,  under 
his  rigid  care,  soon  became  the  best  disciplined  in  the 
whole  army.  He  was  the  favorite  of  the  soldiers 
under  his  command,  who  bestowed  pn  their  gigantic 
leader  the  names  of  Ajax  and  Hercules,  and  rejoiced 
as  he  steadily  rose  in  rank  under  the  discriminating 
judgment  of  the  emperor.  Step  by  step  he  was 
advanced  until  he  reached  the  highest  rank  in  the 
army,  and,  but  for  the  evident  marks  of  his  savage 
origin,  the  emperor  might  have  given  his  own  sister 
in  marriage  to  the  son  of  his  favorite  general. 

The  incautious  emperor  was  nursing  a  serpent. 
The  favors  poured  upon  the  Thracian  peasant  failed 
to  secure  his  fidelity,  and  only  nourished  his  ambition. 
He  began  to  aspire  to  the  highest  place  in  the  em- 
pire, which  had  been  won  by  many  soldiers  before 
him.  Licentiousness  and  profligacy  had  sapped  the 
strength  of  the  army  during  the  weak  preceding 
reigns,  and  Alexander  sought  earnestly  to  overcome 
this  corruption  and  restore  the  rigid  ancient  disci- 
pline. It  was  too  great  a  task  for  one  of  his-  lenient 
disposition.  The  soldiers  were  furious  at  his  restric- 
tions, many  mutinies  broke  out,  his  officers  were  mur- 
dered, his  authority  was  widely  insulted,  he  could 
scarcely  repress  the  disorders  that  broke  out  in  his 
immediate  presence. 


AN   IMPERIAL   SAVAGE.  313 

This  sentiment  in  the  army  offered  the  opportunity 
desired  by  Maximin.  He  sent  his  emissaries  among 
the  soldiers  to  enhance  their  discontent.  For  thir- 
teen years,  said  these  men,  Eome  had  been  governed 
by  a  weak  Syrian,  the  slave  of  his  mother  and  the 
senate.  It  was  time  the  empire  had  a  man  at  its 
head,  a  real  soldier,  who  could  add  to  its  glory  and 
win  new  treasures  for  his  followers. 

Alexander  had  been  engaged  in  a  war  with  Persia. 
He  had  no  sooner  returned  than  an  outbreak  in  Ger- 
many forced  him  to  hasten  to  the  Rhine.  Here  a 
large  army  was  assembled,  made  up  in  part  of  new 
levies,  whose  training  in  the  art  of  war  was  given  to 
the  care  of  Maximin.  The  discipline  exacted  by 
Alexander  was  no  more  acceptable  to  the  soldiers 
here  than  elsewhere,  and  the  secret  agents  of  the 
ambitious  Thracian  found  fertile  ground  for  their 
insinuations. 

At  length  all  was  ripe  for  the  outbreak.  One  day 
— March  19,  239  A.D. — as  Maximin  entered  the  field 
of  exercise,  the  troops  suddenly  saluted  him  as  em- 
peror, and  silenced  by  violent  exclamations  his  obsti- 
nate show  of  refusal.  The  rebels  rushed  to  the  tent 
of  Alexander  and  consummated  their  conspiracy  by 
striking  him  dead.  His  most  faithful  friends  per- 
ished with  him;  others  were  dismissed  from  court 
and  army ;  and  some  suffered  the  crudest  treatment 
from  the  unfeeling  usurper.  Thus  it  was  that  the 
imperial  dignity  descended  from  the  noblest  citizens 
of  Eome  to  a  peasant  of  a  distant  province  of  bar- 
barian origin.  It  was  one  of  the  most  striking  steps 
in  the  decline  of  the  empire. 
o  27 


314  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

The  new  emperor  was  a  man  of  extraordinary 
physical  powers.  He  is  said  to  have  been  more  than 
eight  feet  in  height,  while  his  strength  and  appetite 
were  in  accordance  with  his  gigantic  stature.  It  is 
stated  that  he  could  drink  seven  gallons  of  wine  and 
eat  thirty  or  forty  pounds  of  meat  in  a  day,  and 
could  move  a  loaded  wagon  with  his  arms,  break  a 
horse's  leg  with  his  fist,  crumble  stones  in  his  hands, 
and  tear  up  small  trees  by  the  roots.  His  mental 
powers  did  not  accord  with  his  physical  ones.  He 
was  savage  of  aspect,  ignorant  of  civilized  arts, 
destitute  of  accomplishments,  and  ruthless  in  dispo- 
sition. 

He  had  the  virtues  of  the  camp,  and  these  had 
endeared  him  to  the  soldiers,  but  his  barbarian 
origin,  his  savage  appearance,  and  his  rudeness  and 
ignorance  were  the  contempt  of  cultivated  people, 
and  had  gained  him  many  rebuffs  in  his  humbler 
days.  He  was  now  in  a  position  to  revenge  himself, 
not  only  on  the  haughty  nobles  who  had  treated  him 
with  contempt,  but  even  on  former  friends  who  were 
aware  of  his  mean  origin, — of  which  he  was  heartily 
ashamed.  For  both  these  crimes  many  were  put  to 
death,  and  the  slaughter  of  several  of  his  former 
benefactors  has  stained  the  memory  of  Maximin 
with  the  basest  ingratitude. 

Eome,  in  the  strange  progress  of  its  history,  had 
raised  a  savage  to  the  imperial  seat,  and  it  suffered 
accordingly.  A  scion  of  the  despised  barbarians  of 
the  northern  forests  was  now  its  emperor,  and  he 
visited  on  the  proud  citizens  of  Eome  the  wrongs  of 
his  ancestors.  The  suspicion  and  cruelty  of  Maximin 


AN   IMPERIAL   SAVAGE.  315 

were  unbounded  and  unrelenting.  A  consular  sen- 
ator named  Magnus  was  accused  of  a  conspiracy 
against  his  life.  Without  trial  or  opportunity  for 
defence  Magnus  was  put  to  death,  with  no  less  than 
four  thousand  supposed  accomplices. 

This  was  but  an  incident  in  a  frightful  reign  of 
terror.  The  emperor  kept  aloof  from  his  capital, 
but  he  filled  Eome,  and  the  whole  empire,  in  fact, 
with  spies  and  informers.  The  slightest  accusation 
or  suspicion  was  sufficient  for  the  blood-thirsty 
tyrant.  On  a  mere  unproved  charge  Eoman  nobles 
of  the  highest  descent — men  who  had  served  as  con- 
suls, governed  provinces,  commanded  armies,  enjoyed 
triumphs — were  seized,  chained  on  the  public  car- 
riages, and  borne  away  to  the  distant  camp  of  the 
low-born  tyrant. 

Here  they  found  neither  justice  nor  compassion. 
Exile,  confiscation,  and  ordinary  execution  were  mild 
measures  with  Maximin.  Some  of  the  unfortunates 
were  clubbed  to  death,  some  exposed  to  wild  beasts, 
some  sewed  in  the  hides  of  slaughtered  animals  and 
left  to  perish.  The  worst  enormities  of  Caligula 
and  Nero  were  rivalled  by  this  rude  soldier,  who, 
during  the  three  years  of  his  reign,  disdained  to 
visit  either  Rome  or  Italy,  and  permitted  no  men 
of  high  birth,  elegant  accomplishments,  or  knowl- 
edge of  public  business  to  approach  his  person.  His 
imperial  seat  shifted  from  a  camp  on  the  Rhine  to 
one  on  the  Danube,  and  his  sole  idea  of  government 
seems  to  have  been  the  execution  of  the  suspected. 

It  was  the  great  that  suffered,  and  to  this  the 
people  were  indifferent.  But  they  all  felt  his  avarice. 


S16  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

The  soldiers  demanded  rewards,  and  the  empire  was 
drained  to  supply  them.  By  a  single  edict  all  the 
stored-up  revenue  of  the  cities  was  taken  to  supply 
Maximin's  treasury.  The  temples  were  robbed  of 
their  treasures,  and  the  statues  of  gods,  heroes,  and 
emperors  were  melted  down  and  converted  into  coin. 
A  general  cry  of  indignation  against  this  impiety 
rose  throughout  the  Roman  world,  and  it  was  evi- 
dent that  the  end  of  this  frightful  tyranny  was 
approaching. 

An  insurrection  broke  out  in  Africa.  It  was  sup- 
ported in  Rome.  But  it  ended  in  failure,  the  Gor- 
dians,  father  and  son,  who  headed  it,  were  slain,  and 
the  senate  and  nobles  of  Rome  fell  into  mortal  terror. 
They  looked  for  a  frightful  retribution  from  the  im- 
perial monster.  With  the  courage  of  despair  they 
took  the  only  step  that  remained:  two  new  emperors, 
Maximus  and  Balbinus,  were  appointed,  and  active 
steps  taken  to  defend  Italy  and  Rome. 

There  was  no  time  to  be  lost.  News  of  these  rev- 
olutionary movements  had  roused  in  Maximin  the 
rage  of  a  wild  beast.  All  who  approached  his  person 
were  in  danger,  even  his  son  and  nearest  friends. 
Under  his  command  was  a  large,  well-disciplined, 
and  experienced  army.  He  was  a  soldier  of  acknowl- 
edged valor  and  military  ability.  The  rebels,  with 
their  hasty  levies  and  untried  commanders,  had 
everything  to  fear. 

They  took  judicious  steps.  When  the  troops  of 
Maximin,  crossing  the  Julian  Alps,  reached  the  bor- 
ders of  Italy,  they  were  terrified  by  the  silence  and 
desolation  that  prevailed.  The  villages  and  open 


AN   IMPERIAL   SAVAGE.  317 

towns  had  been  abandoned,  the  bridges  destroyed, 
the  cattle  driven  away,  the  provisions  removed,  the 
country  made  a  desert.  The  people  had  gathered 
into  the  walled  cities,  which  were  plentifully  pro- 
visioned and  garrisoned.  The  purpose  of  the  senate 
was  to  weaken  Maximin  by  famine  and  retard  him 
by  siege. 

The  first  city  assailed  was  Aquileia.  It  was  fully 
provisioned  and  vigorously  defended,  the  inhabitants 
preferring  death  on  their  walls  to  death  by  the 
tyrant's  order.  Yet  Kome  was  in  imminent  danger. 
Maximin  might  at  any  moment  abandon  the  siege  of 
a  frontier  city  and  march  upon  the  capital.  There 
was  no  army  capable  of  opposing  him.  The  fate  of 
Eome  hung  upon  a  thread. 

The  hand  of  an  assassin  cut  that  thread.  The 
severity  of  the  weather,  the  growth  of  disease,  the 
lack  of  food,  had  spread  disaffection  through  Maxi- 
min's  army.  Ignorant  of  the  true  state  of  affairs, 
many  of  the  soldiers  feared  that  the  whole  empire 
was  in  arms  against  them.  The  tyrant,  vexed  at  the 
obstinate  defence  of  Aquileia,  visited  his  anger  on  his 
men,  and  roused  a  stern  desire  for  revenge.  The  end 
came  soon.  A  party  of  Praetorian  guards,  in  dreact 
for  their  wives  and  children,  who  were  in  the  camp 
of  Alba,  near  Eome,  broke  into  sudden  revolt,  entered 
Maximin' s  tent,  and  killed  him,  his  son,  and  the  prin- 
cipal ministers  of  his  tyranny. 

The  whole  army  sympathized  with  this  impulsive 

act.     The  heads  of  the  dead,  borne  on  the  points  of 

spears,  were  shown  the  garrison,  and  at  once  the  gates 

were  thrown  open,  the  hungry  troops  supplied  with 

27* 


318  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

food,  and  a  general  fraternization  took  place.  Joy 
in  the  fall  of  the  tyrant  was  universal  throughout 
the  empire,  the  two  new  emperors  entered  Eome  in 
a  triumphal  procession,  people  and  nobles  alike  went 
wild  with  enthusiasm,  and  the  belief  was  entertained 
that  a  golden  age  was  to  succeed  the  age  of  iron  that 
had  come  to  an  end.  Yet  within  three  months  after- 
wards both  the  new  emperors  were  massacred  in  the 
streets  of  Rome,  and  the  hoped-for  era  of  happiness 
and  prosperity  vanished  before  the  swelling  tide  of 
oppression,  demoralization,  and  decline. 


THE  DEEDS  OF  CONSTANTINE. 

IN  the  century  that  followed  the  reign  of  Maximin 
great  changes  came  upon  the  empire  of  Rome.  The 
process  of  decline  went  steadily  on.  The  city  of 
Eome  sank  in  importance  as  the  centre  of  the 
empire.  The  armies  were  recruited  from  former 
barbarian  tribes ;  many  of  the  emperors  reigned  in 
the  field ;  the  savage  inmates  of  the  northern  forests, 
hitherto  sternly  restrained,  now  began  to  gain  a  foot- 
ing within  the  borders ;  the  Goths  plundered  Greece ; 
the  Persians  took  Armenia ;  the  day  of  the  downfall 
of  the  great  empire  was  coming,  slowly  but  surely. 
One  important  event  during  this  period,  the  rebellion 
of  Zenobia  and  the  ruin  of  Palmyra,  we  have  told  it, 
"  Tales  of  Greece."  There  are  two  other  events  to 
be  told :  the  rise  of  Christianity,  and  the  founding 
of  a  new  capital  of  the  empire. 

From  the  date  of  the  death  of  Christ,  the  Christ- 
ian religion  made  continual  progress  in  the  city  and 
empire  of  Rome.  Despite  the  contempt  with  which 
its  believers  were  viewed,  despite  the  persecution  to 
which  they  were  subjected,  despite  frequent  mas- 
sacres and  martyrdoms,  their  numbers  rapidly  in- 
creased, and  the  many  superstitions  of  the  empire 
gradually  gave  way  before  the  doctrines  of  human 

819 


320  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

brotherhood,  infinite  love  and  mercy,  and  the  eternal 
existence  and  happiness  of  those  who  believed  in 
Christ  and  practised  virtue.  By  the  time  of  the 
accession  of  the  great  emperor  Constantino,  306  A.D., 
the  Christians  were  so  numerous  in  the  army  and 
populace  of  the  empire  that  they  had  to  be  dealt 
with  more  mercifully  than  of  old,  and  their  teachings 
were  no  longer  confined  to  the  lowly,  but  ascended 
to  the  level  of  the  throne  itself. 

The  traditional  story  handed  down  to  us  is  that 
Constantine,  in  his  struggle  with  Maxentius  for  the 
empire  of  the  West,  saw  in  the  sky,  above  the  mid- 
day sun,  a  great  luminous  cross,  marked  with  the 
words,  "  In  hoc  signo  vinces"  ("  In  this  sign  conquer"). 
The  whole  army  beheld  this  amazing  object;  and 
during  the  following  night  Christ  appeared  to  the 
emperor  in  a  vision,  and  directed  him  to  march 
against  his  enemies  under  the  standard  of  the  cross. 
Another  writer  claims  that  a  whole  army  of  divine 
warriors  were  seen  descending  from  the  sky,  and  fly- 
ing to  the  aid  of  Constantine. 

It  may  be  said  that  both  these  stories,  though 
told  by  devout  authors,  are  destitute  of  proof,  and 
that  all  we  know  is  that  Constantine  became  a  pro- 
fessed Christian,  and  as  such  availed  himself  of  the 
enthusiastic  support  of  the  Christians  of  his  army. 
By  an  edict  issued  at  Milan,  313  A.D.,  he  gave  civil 
rights  and  toleration  to  the  Christians  throughout 
the  empire,  and  not  long  afterwards  proclaimed 
Christianity  the  religion  of  the  state,  though  the 
pagan  worship  was  still  tolerated. 

This  highly  important  act  of  Constantine  was  fob 


THE   DEEDS   OF   CONSTANTINE.  321 

lowed  by  another  of  great  importance,  the  establish- 
ment of  a  new  capital  of  the  Eoman  empire,  one 
which  was  destined  to  keep  alive  some  shadow  of 
that  empire  for  many  centuries  after  Eome  itself  had 
become  the  capital  of  a  kingdom  of  barbarians.  On 
the  European  bank  of  the  Bosphorus,  the  channel 
which  connects  the  Sea  of  Marmora  with  the  Black 
Sea,  had  for  ages  stood  the  city  of  Byzantium, 
which  played  an  important  part  in  Grecian  history. 

On  the  basis  of  this  old  city  Constantino  resolved 
to  build  a  new  one,  worthy  his  greatness.  The 
situation  was  much  more  central  than  that  of  Eome, 
and  was  admirably  chosen  for  the  government  of  an 
empire  that  extended  as  far  to  the  east  in  Asia  as  to 
the  west  in  Europe,  while  it  was  at  once  defended  by 
nature  against  hostile  attack  and  open  to  the  benefits 
of  commercial  intercourse.  This,  then,  was  the  site 
chosen  for  the  new  capital,  and  here  the  city  of  Con- 
stantinople arose. 

We  have,  in  our  first  chapter,  described  how  Bomu- 
lus  laid  out  the  walls  of  Eome.  "With  equally  im- 
pressive ceremonies  Constantino  traced  those  of  the 
new  capital  of  the  empire.  Lance  in  hand,  and  fol- 
lowed by  a  solemn  procession,  the  emperor  walked 
over  a  route  of  such  extent  that  his  assistants  cried 
out  in  astonishment  that  he  had  already  exceeded 
the  dimensions  of  a  great  city. 

"  I  shall  still  advance,"  said  Constantino,  "  till  He, 
the  invisible  guide  who  marches  before  me,  thinks 
proper  to  stop." 

From  the  eastern  promontory  to  that  part  of  the 
Bosphorus  known  as  the  "Golden  Gate,"  the  city 

II.— V 


HISTORICAL   TALES. 

extended  along  the  strait  about  three  Roman  miles. 
Its  circumference  measured  between  ten  and  eleven, 
the  space  embraced  equalling  about  two  thousand 
acres.  Upon  the  five  hills  enclosed  within  this  space, 
which,  to  those  who  approach  Constantinople,  rise 
above  each  other  in  beautiful  order,  was  built  the 
new  city,  the  choicest  marble  and  the  most  costly 
and  showy  materials  being  abundantly  employed  to 
add  grandeur  and  splendor  to  the  natural  beauty 
of  the  site. 

A  great  multitude  of  builders  and  architects  were 
employed  in  raising  the  walls  and  building  the  edi- 
fices of  the  imperial  city,  while  the  treasures  of  the 
empire  were  spent  without  stint  in  the  effort  to 
make  it  an  unequalled  monument.  In  that  day  the 
art  of  architecture  had  greatly  declined,  but  for  the 
adornment  of  the  city  there  were  to  be  had  the 
noblest  productions  the  world  had  ever  known,  the 
works  of  the  most  celebrated  artists  of  the  age  of 
Pericles. 

These  were  amply  employed.  To  adorn  the  new 
city,  the  cities  of  Greece  and  Asia  were  despoiled  of 
their  choicest  treasures  of  art.  In  the  Forum  was 
placed  a  lofty  column  of  porphyry,  one  hundred  and 
twenty  feet  in  height,  on  whose  summit  stood  a 
colossal  statue  of  Apollo,  supposed  to  be  the  work  of 
Phidias.  In  the  stately  circus  or  hippodrome,  the 
space  between  the  goals,  round  which  the  chariots 
turned  in  their  swift  flight,  was  filled  with  ancient 
statues  and  obelisks.  Here  was  also  a  trophy  of 
striking  historical  value,  the  bodies  of  three  serpents 
twisted  into  a  pillar  of  brass,  which  once  supported 


THE   DEEDS  OP   CONSTANTINE.  323 

the  golden  tripod  that  was  consecrated  by  the  Greeks 
in  the  temple  of  Delphi  after  the  defeat  of  Xerxes. 
It  still  exists,  as  the  choicest  antiquarian  relic  of  the 
city. 

The  palace  was  a  magnificent  edifice,  hardly  sur- 
passed by  that  of  Kome  itself.  The  baths  were  en- 
riched with  lofty  columns,  handsome  marbles,  and 
more  than  threescore  statues  of  brass.  The  city 
contained  numbers  of  other  magnificent  public  build- 
ings, and  over  four  thousand  noble  residences,  which 
towered  above  the  multitude  of  plebeian  dwellings. 
As  for  its  wealth  and  population,  these,  in  less  than 
a  century,  vied  with  those  of  Eome  itself. 

With  such  energy  did  Constantine  push  the  work 
on  his  city  that  its  principal  edifices  were  finished  in 
a  few  years, — or  in  a  few  months,  as  one  authority 
states,  though  this  statement  seems  to  lack  prob- 
ability. This  done,  the  founder  dedicated  his  new 
capital  with  the  most  impressive  ceremonies,  and 
with  games  and  largesses  to  the  people  of  the  great- 
est pomp  and  cost.  An  edict,  engraved  on  a  marble 
column,  gave  to  the  new  city  the  title  of  Second  or 
New  Eome.  But  this  official  title  died,  as  the  ac- 
cepted name  of  the  city,  almost  as  soon  as  it  was 
born.  Constantinople,  the  "city  of  Constantine," 
became  the  popular  name,  and  so  it  continues  till 
this  day  in  Christian  acceptation.  In  reality,  how- 
ever, the  city  has  suffered  another  change  of  name, 
for  its  present  possessors,  the  Turks,  know  it  by  the 
name  of  Stamboul. 

An  interesting  ceremony  succeeded.  With  every 
return  of  the  birthday  of  the  city,  a  statue  of  Con- 


324  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

stantine,  made  of  gilt  wood  and  bearing  in  its  right 
hand  a  small  image  of  the  genius  of  the  city,  was 
placed  on  a  triumphal  car,  and  drawn  in  solemn  pro- 
cession through  the  Hippodrome,  attended  by  the 
guards,  who  carried  white  tapers  and  were  dressed 
in  their  richest  robes.  "When  it  came  opposite  the 
throne  of  the  reigning  emperor,  he  rose  from  his 
seat,  and,  with  grateful  reverence,  adored  the  mem- 
ory of  the  founder.  Thus  it  was  that  Byzantium 
was  replaced  by  Constantinople,  and  thus  was  the 
founder  of  the  new  capital  held  in  honor. 


THE  GOTHS   CROSS   THE 
DANUBE. 

THE  doom  of  Home  was  at  hand.  Its  empire  had 
extended  almost  inimitably  to  the  east  and  west, 
had  crossed  the  sea  and  deeply  penetrated  the  desert 
to  the  south,  but  had  failed  in  its  advances  to  the 
north.  The  Ehine  and  the  Danube  here  formed  its 
boundaries.  The  great  forest  region  which  lay  be- 
yond these,  with  its  hosts  of  blue-eyed  and  fair- 
skinned  barbarians,  defied  the  armies  of  Borne. 
Here  and  there  the  forest  was  penetrated,  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  its  tenants  were  slain,  yet  Eome 
failed  to  subdue  its  swarming  tribes,  and  simply 
taught  them  the  principle  of  combination  and  the 
art  of  war.  Early  in  the  history  of  Eome  it  was 
taken  and  burnt  by  the  Gauls.  Eaids  of  barbarians 
across  the  border  were  frequent  in  its  later  history. 
As  Eome  grew  weaker,  the  tribes  of  the  north  grew 
bolder  and  stronger.  The  armies  of  the  empire  were 
kept  busy  in  holding  the  lines  of  the  Ehine  and  the 
Danube.  At  length  Eoman  weakness  and  incom- 
petency  permitted  this  barrier  to  be  broken,  and  the 
beginning  of  the  end  was  at  hand.  This  is  the  im- 
portant event  which  we  have  now  to  describe. 

In  the  year  375  A.D.  there  existed  a  great  Gothic 
kingdom  in  the  north,  extending  from  the  Baltic  tt 
28  325 


326  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

the  Black  Sea,  under  the  rule  of  an  able  monarch 
named  Hermanric,  who  had  conquered  and  com- 
bined numerous  tribes  into  a  single  nation.  On  this 
nation,  just  as  assassination  removed  the  Gothic  con- 
queror, descended  a  vast  and  frightful  horde  from 
northern  Asia,  the  mighty  invasion  of  the  Huns, 
which  was  to  shake  to  its  heart  the  empire  of  Eome. 

The  Ostrogoths  (Eastern  Goths)  were  conquered 
by  this  savage  horde.  The  Visigoths  (Western 
Goths),  stricken  with  mortal  fear,  hurried  to  the 
Danube  and  implored  the  Romans  to  save  them 
from  annihilation.  For  many  miles  along  the  banks 
of  the  river  extended  the  panic-stricken  multitude, 
with  outstretched  arms  and  pathetic  lamentations, 
praying  for  permission  to  cross.  If  settled  on  the 
waste  lands  of  Thrace  they  would  pledge  themselves 
to  be  faithful  subjects  of  Eome,  to  obey  its  laws  and 
guard  its  limits. 

Sympathy  and  pity  counselled  the  emperor  to 
grant  the  request.  Political  considerations  bade 
him  refuse.  To  admit  such  a  host  of  warlike  bar- 
barians to  the  empire  was  full  of  danger.  Finally 
they  were  permitted  to  cross,  under  two  stringent 
conditions:  they  must  deliver  up  their  arms,  and 
they  must  yield  their  children,  who  were  to  be 
taken  to  Asia,  educated,  and  held  as  hostages.  Such 
was  the  first  fatal  step  in  the  overthrow  of  Eome. 

The  task  of  crossing  was  a  difficult  one.  The 
Danube  there  was  more  than  a  mile  wide,  and  had 
been  swollen  with  rains.  A  large  fleet  of  boats  and 
ressels  was  provided,  but  it  took  many  days  and 
nights  to  transport  the  mighty  host,  and  numbers 


THE   GOTHS   CROSS   THE   DANUBE.  327 

of  them  were  swept  away  and  drowned  by  the  rapid 
current.  Probably  the  whole  multitude  numbered 
nearly  a  million,  of  whom  two  hundred  thousand 
were  warriors. 

Of  the  conditions  made  only  one  was  carried  out. 
The  children  of  the  Goths  were  removed,  and  taken 
to  the  distant  lands  chosen  for  their  residence.  But 
the  arms  were  not  given  up.  The  Roman  officers 
were  bribed  to  let  the  warriors  retain  their  weapons, 
and  in  a  short  time  a  great  army  of  armed  barba 
rians  was  encamped  on  the  southern  bank  of  the 
Danube. 

These  new  subjects  of  Rome  were  treated  in  a 
way  well  calculated  to  convert  them  into  enemies. 
The  officials  of  Thrace  disobeyed  the  orders  of  the 
emperor,  sold  the  Goths  the  meanest  food  at  extrav- 
agant prices,  and  by  their  rapacious  avarice  bitterly 
irritated  them.  While  this  was  going  on,  the  Ostro- 
goths also  appeared  on  the  Danube,  and  solicited 
permission  to  cross.  Valens,  the  emperor,  refused. 
He  was  beginning  to  fear  that  he  had  already  too 
many  subjects  of  that  race.  But  the  discontent  of 
the  Visigoths  had  drawn  the  soldiers  from  the 
stream  and  left  it  unguarded.  The  Ostrogoths 
seized  vessels  and  built  rafts.  They  crossed  with- 
out opposition.  Soon  a  new  and  hostile  army  was 
encamped  upon  the  territory  of  the  Roman  empire. 

The  discontent  of  the  Visigoths  was  not  long  in 
breaking  into  open  war.  They  had  marched  to 
Marcianopolis,  seventy  miles  from  the  Danube. 
Here  Lupicinus,  one  of  the  governors  of  Thrace,  in- 
vited the  Gothic  chiefs  to  a  splendid  entertainment. 


HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Their  guards  remained  under  arms  at  the  entrance 
to  the  palace.  But  the  gates  of  the  city  were  closely 
guarded,  and  the  Goths  outside  were  refused  the  use 
of  a  plentiful  market,  to  which  they  claimed  admis- 
sion as  subjects  of  Eome. 

The  citizens  treated  them  with  insult  and  derision. 
The  Goths  grew  angry.  Words  led  to  blows.  A 
sword  was  drawn,  and  the  first  blood  shed  in  a  long 
and  ruinous  war.  Lupicinus  was  told  that  many  of 
his  soldiers  had  been  slain.  Heated  with  wine,  he 
gave  orders  that  they  should  be  revenged  by  the 
death  of  the  Gothic  guards  at  the  palace  gates. 

The  shouts  and  groans  in  the  street  warned  Friti- 
gern,  the  Gothic  king,  of  his  danger.  At  a  word 
from  him  his  comrades  at  the  banquet  drew  their 
swords,  forced  their  way  from  the  palace  and  through 
the  streets,  and,  mounting  their  horses,  rode  with  all 
speed  to  their  camp,  and  told  their  followers  what 
had  occurred.  Instantly  cries  of  vengeance  and 
warlike  shouts  arose,  war  was  resolved  upon  by  the 
chiefs,  the  banners  of  the  host  were  displayed,  and 
the  sound  of  the  trumpets  carried  afar  the  hostile 
warning. 

Lupicinus  hastily  collected  such  troops  as  he  could 
command  and  advanced  against  the  barbarians ;  but 
the  Roman  ranks  were  broken  and  the  legions 
slaughtered,  while  their  guilty  leader  was  forced  to 
fly  for  his  life.  "  That  successful  day  put  an  end  to 
the  distress  of  the  barbarians  and  the  security  of 
the  Romans,"  says  a  Gothic  historian. 

The  imprudence  of  Valens  had  introduced  a  nation 
of  warriors  into  the  heart  of  the  empire ;  the  venality 


THE    GOTHS   CROSS   THE   DANUBE.  329 

of  the  officials  had  converted  them  into  enemies; 
Valens,  instead  of  seeking  to  remove  their  causes  of 
hostility,  marched  with  an  army  against  them.  We 
cannot  here  describe  the  various  conflicts  that  took 
place.  It  will  suffice  to  say  that  other  barbarians 
crossed  the  Danube,  and  that  even  some  of  the  Huns 
joined  the  army  of  Fritigern.  The  borders  of  the 
empire  were  effectually  broken,  and  the  forest  myri- 
ads swarmed  unchecked  into  the  empire. 

On  August  9,  378,  the  Emperor  Yalens,  inspired 
by  ambition  and  moved  by  the  demands  of  the  ig- 
norant multitude,  left  the  strong  walls  of  Adrian- 
ople  and  marched  to  attack  the  Goths,  who  were  en, 
camped  twelve  miles  away.  The  result  was  fatal. 
The  Eomans,  exhausted  with  their  march,  suffering 
from  heat  and  thirst,  confused  and  ill-organized,  met 
with  a  complete  defeat.  The  emperor  was  slain  on 
the  field  or  burnt  to  death  in  a  hut  to  which  he  had 
been  carried  wounded,  hundreds  of  distinguished 
officers  perished,  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  army 
were  destroyed,  and  the  darkness  of  the  night  only 
saved  the  rest.  Valens  had  been  badly  punished  for 
his  imprudence  and  the  Romans  for  their  venality. 

This  signal  victory  of  the  Goths  was  followed  by 
a  siege  of  Adrianople.  But  the  barbarians  knew 
nothing  of  the  art  of  attacking  stone  walls,  and 
quickly  gave  up  the  impossible  task.  From  Adri- 
anople they  marched  to  Constantinople,  but  were 
forced  to  content  themselves  with  ravaging  the  sub- 
urbs and  gazing,  with  impotent  desire,  on  the  city's 
distant  splendor.  Then,  laden  with  the  rich  spoils 
of  the  suburbs,  they  marched  southward  through 
28* 


330  .HISTORICAL   TALES. 

Thrace,  and  spread  over  the  face  of  a  fertile  and 
cultivated  country  extending  as  far  as  the  confines 
of  Italy,  their  course  being  everywhere  marked  with 
massacre,  conflagration,  and  rapine,  until  some  of 
the  fairest  regions  of  the  empire  were  turned  almost 
into  a  desert.  It  may  be  that  the  numbers  of  Eo- 
mans  who  perished  from  this  invasion  equalled  those 
of  the  Goths  whom  imprudent  compassion  had  de- 
livered from  the  Huns. 

As  regards  the  children  of  the  Goths,  who  had 
been  distributed  in  the  provinces  of  Asia  Minor, 
there  remains  a  cruel  story  to  tell.  Though  given 
the  education  and  taught  the  arts  of  the  Eomans, 
they  did  not  forget  their  origin,  and  the  suspicion 
arose  that  they  were  plotting  to  repeat  in  Asia  the 
deeds  of  their  fathers  in  Europe.  Julius,  who  com- 
manded the  troops  after  the  death  of  Valens,  took 
bloody  measures  to  prevent  any  such  calamity.  The 
youthful  Goths  were  bidden  to  assemble,  on  a  stated 
day,  in  the  capital  cities  of  their  provinces,  the  hint 
being  given  that  they  were  to  receive  gifts  of  land 
and  money.  On  the  appointed  day  they  were  col- 
lected unarmed  in  the  Forum  of  each  city,  the  sur- 
rounding streets  being  occupied  by  Eoman  troops, 
and  the  roofs  of  the  houses  covered  with  archers 
and  slingers.  At  a  fixed  hour,  in  all  the  cities,  the 
signal  for  slaughter  was  given,  and  in  an  hour  more 
not  one  of  these  helpless  wards  of  Eome  remained 
alive.  The  cruel  treachery  of  this  blood-thirsty  act 
remains  almost  unparalleled  in  history. 


THE  DOWNFALL    OF  ROME. 

THEODOSIUS,  the  great  and  noble  emperor  who 
succeeded  Valens,  pacified  and  made  quiet  subjects 
of  the  Goths.  He  died  in  395,  and  before  the  year 
ended  the  Gothic  nation  was  again  in  arms.  At  the 
first  sound  of  the  trumpet  the  warriors,  who  had 
been  forced  to  a  life  of  labor,  deserted  their  fields 
and  flocked  to  the  standards  of  war.  The  barriers 
of  the  empire  were  down.  Across  the  frozen  sur- 
face of  the  Danube  flocked  savage  tribesmen  from 
the  northern  forests,  and  joined  the  Gothic  hosts. 
Under  the  leadership  of  an  able  commander,  the 
famous  Alaric,  the  barbarians  swept  from  their  fields 
and  poured  downward  upon  Greece,  in  search  of  an 
easier  road  to  fortune  than  the  toilsome  one  of 
industry. 

Many  centuries  had  passed  since  the  Persians  in- 
vaded Greece,  and  the  men  of  Marathon  and  Ther- 
mopylae were  no  more.  Men  had  been  posted  to 
defend  the  world-famous  pass,  but,  instead  of  fight- 
ing to  the  death,  like  Leonidas  and  his  Spartans  of 
old,  they  retired  without  a  blow,  and  left  Greece  to 
the  mercy  of  the  Goth. 

Instantly  a  deluge  of  barbarians  spread  right  and 
left,  and  the  whole  country  was  ravaged.  Thebea 

381 


332  HISTORICAL  TALES. 

alone  resisted.  Athens  admitted  Alaric  within  its 
gates,  and  saved  itself  by  giving  the  barbarian  chief 
a  bath  and  a  banquet.  The  other  famous  cities  had 
lost  their  walls,  and  Corinth,  Argos,  and  Sparta 
yielded  without  defence  to  the  Goths.  The  wealth 
of  the  cities  and  the  produce  of  the  country  were 
ravaged  without  stint,  villages  and  towns  were  com- 
mitted to  the  flames,  thousands  of  the  inhabitants 
were  borne  off  to  slavery,  and  for  years  afterwards 
the  track  of  the  Goths  could  be  traced  in  ruin 
throughout  the  land. 

By  a  fortunate  chance  Rome  possessed  at  that 
epoch  a  great  general,  the  famous  Stilicho,  whose 
military  genius  has  rarely  been  surpassed.  He  had 
before  him  a  mighty  task,  the  forcing  back  of  the  high 
tide  of  barbarian  overflow,  but  he  did  it  well  while 
he  lived.  His  death  brought  ruin  on  Rome.  Stilicho 
hastened  to  Greece  and  quickly  drove  the  Goths 
from  the  Peloponnesus.  But  jealousy  between  Con- 
stantinople and  Rome  tied  his  hands,  he  was  recalled 
to  Italy,  and  the  weak  emperor  of  the  East  rewarded 
the  Gothic  general  for  his  destructive  raid  by  making 
him  master-general  of  Illyricum. 

Alaric,  fired  by  ambition,  used  his  new  power  in 
forcing  the  cities  of  his  dominion  to  supply  the 
Goths  with  the  weapons  of  war.  Then,  Greece  and 
the  country  to  the  north  having  been  devastated,  he 
turned  his  arms  against  Italy,  and  about  400  A.D. 
appeared  at  the  foot  of  the  Julian  Alps,  the  first  in- 
vader who  had  threatened  Italy  since  the  days  of 
Hannibal,  six  hundred  years  before. 

There  were  at  that  time  two  rulers  of  the  Roman 


THE  LAST  COMBAT  OF  THE  GLADIATORS. 


THE   DOWNFALL   OP   ROME.  333 

empire, — Arcadius,  emperor  of  the  East,  and  Hono- 
rius,  emperor  of  the  West.  The  latter,  a  coward 
himself,  had  a  brave  man  to  command  his  armies, 
— Stilicho,  who  had  driven  the  Goths  from  Greece. 
But  Italy,  though  it  had  a  general,  was  destitute  of 
an  army.  To  meet  the  invading  foe,  Stilicho  was 
forced  to  empty  the  forts  on  the  Ehine,  and  even  to 
send  to  England  for  the  legion  that  guarded  the 
Caledonian  wall.  With  the  array  thus  raised  he 
met  the  Gothic  host  at  Pollentia,  and  defeated  them 
with  frightful  slaughter,  recovering  from  their  camp 
many  of  the  spoils  of  Greece.  Another  battle  was 
fought  at  Yerona,  and  the  Goths  were  again  de- 
feated. They  were  now  forced  to  retire  from  Italy, 
Stilicho  and  the  emperor  entered  Rome,  and  that 
capital  saw  its  last  great  triumph,  and  gloried  in  a 
revival  of  its  magnificent  ancient  games. 

In  these  games  the  cruel  combat  of  gladiators  was 
shown  for  the  last  time  to  the  blood-thirsty  populace 
of  Rome.  The  edict  of  Constantino  had  failed  to 
stop  these  frightful  sports.  The  appeal  of  a  Chris- 
tian poet  was  equally  without  effect.  A  more  de- 
cisive action  was  necessary,  and  it  came.  In  the 
midst  of  these  bloody  contests  an  Asiatic  monk, 
named  Telemachus,  rushed  into  the  arena  and  at- 
tempted to  separate  the  gladiators.  He  paid  for  his 
rashness  with  his  life,  being  stoned  to  death  by  the 
furious  spectators,  with  whose  pleasure  he  had  dared 
to  interfere.  But  his  death  had  its  effect.  The  fury 
of  the  people  was  followed  by  shame.  Telemachus 
was  looked  upon  as  a  martyr,  and  the  gladiatorial 
shows  came  to  an  end,  the  emperor  abolishing  for- 


334  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

ever  the  spectacle  of  human  slaughter  and  human 
cruelty  in  the  amphitheatre  of  Rome. 

Rome  triumphed  too  soon.  Its  ovation  to  victory 
was  the  expiring  gleam  in  its  long  career  of  glory 
and  dominion.  Its  downfall  was  at  hand.  Fight  as 
it  might  in  Italy,  the  gate-ways  of  the  empire  lay 
open  in  the  north,  and  through  them  still  poured 
barbarian  hordes.  The  myriads  of  the  Huns,  rush- 
ing in  a  devouring  wave  from  the  borders  of  China, 
made  a  mighty  stir  in  the  forest  region  of  the  Baltic 
and  the  Danube.  In  the  year  406  a  vast  host  of 
Germans,  known  by  the  names  of  Vandals,  Burgun- 
dians,  and  Suevi,  under  a  leader  named  Rhodogast, 
or  Radagaisus,  crossed  the  Danube  and  made  its  way 
unopposed  to  Italy.  Multitudes  of  Goths  joined 
them,  till  the  army  numbered  not  less  than  two 
hundred  thousand  fighting  men. 

As  the  flood  of  barbarians  rushed  southward 
through  Italy,  many  cities  were  pillaged  or  de- 
stroyed, and  the  city  of  Florence  sustained  its  first 
recorded  siege.  Alaric  and  his  Goths  were  Chris- 
tians. Radagaisus  and  his  Germans  were  half- savage 
pagans.  Florence,  which  had  dared  oppose  them, 
was  threatened  with  utter  ruin.  It  was  to  be  re- 
duced to  stones  and  ashes,  and  its  noblest  senators 
were  to  be  sacrificed  on  the  altars  of  the  German 
gods.  The  Florentines,  thus  threatened,  fought 
bravely,  but  they  were  reduced  to  the  last  ex- 
tremity before  deliverance  came. 

Stilicho  had  not  been  idle  during  this  destructive 
raid.  By  calling  troops  from  the  frontiers,  by  arm- 
ing slaves,  and  by  enlisting  barbarian  allies,  he  was 


THE   DOWNFALL   OF   ROME.  335 

at  length  able  to  take  the  field.  He  led  the  last 
army  of  Eome,  and  dared  not  expose  it  to  the  wild 
valor  of  the  savage  foe.  On  the  contrary,  he  sur- 
rounded their  camp  with  strong  lines  which  defied 
their  efforts  to  break  through,  and  waited  till  star- 
vation should  force  them  to  surrender. 

Florence  was  relieved.  The  besiegers  were  in 
their  turn  besieged.  Their  bravest  warriors  were 
slain  in  efforts  to  break  the  Eoman  lines.  Rada- 
gaisus  surrendered  to  Stilicho,  and  was  instantly  ex- 
ecuted. Such  of  his  followers  as  had  not  been  swept 
away  by  famine  and  disease  were  sold  as  slaves. 
The  great  host  disappeared,  and  Stilicho  a  second 
time  won  the  proud  title  of  Deliverer  of  Italy. 

But  the  whole  army  of  Radagaisus  was  not  de 
stroyed.  Half  of  it  had  remained  in  the  north. 
These  were  forced  by  Stilicho  to  retreat  from  Italy. 
But  Gaul  lay  open  to  their  fury.  That  great  and  rich 
section  of  the  empire  was  invaded  and  frightfully 
ravaged,  and  its  conquerors  never  afterwards  left  its 
fertile  fields.  The  empire  of  Rome  ceased  to  exist  in 
the  countries  beyond  the  Alps,  those  great  regions 
which  had  been  won  by  the  arms  of  Marius  and  Csesar. 

And  now  the  time  had  come  for  Rome  to  destroy 
itself.  The  mind  of  the  emperor  was  poisoned 
against  Stilicho,  the  sole  remaining  bulwark  of  his 
power.  He  had  sought  to  tie  the  hands  of  Alaric 
with  gifts  of  power  and  gold,  and  was  accused  of 
treason  by  his  enemies.  The  weak  Honorius  gave 
way,  and  Stilicho  was  slain.  His  friends  shared  his 
fate,  and  the  cowardly  imbecile  who  ruled  Rome  cut 
down  the  only  safeguard  of  his  throne. 


336  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

The  result  was  what  might  have  been  foreseen. 
In  a  few  months  after  the  death  of  Stilicho,  Alaric 
was  again  in  Italy,  exasperated  by  the  bad  faith  of 
the  court,  which  had  promised  and  not  performed. 
There  was  no  army  and  no  general  to  meet  him. 
City  after  city  was  pillaged.  Avoiding  the  strong 
walls  of  Ravenna,  behind  which  the  emperor  lay 
secure,  he  marched  on  Eome,  led  his  army  under  the 
stately  arches,  adorned  with  the  spoils  of  countless 
victories,  and  pitched  his  tents  beneath  the  walls  of 
the  imperial  city. 

Six  hundred  and  nineteen  years  had  passed  since 
a  foreign  foe  had  gazed  upon  those  proud  walls, 
within  which  lay  the  richest  and  most  splendid  city 
of  the  world,  peopled  by  a  population  of  more  than 
a  million  souls.  But  Borne  was  no  longer  the  city 
which  had  defied  the  hosts  of  Hannibal,  and  had  sold 
at  auction,  for  a  fair  price,  the  very  ground  on  which 
the  great  Carthaginian  had  pitched  his  tent.  Alaric 
was  not  a  Hannibal,  but  much  less  were  the  Romans 
of  his  day  the  Romans  of  the  past. 

Instead  of  striking  for  the  honor  of  Rome,  they 
lay  and  starved  within  their  walls  until  thousands 
had  died  in  houses  and  streets.  No  army  came  to 
their  relief,  and  in  despair  the  senate  sent  delegates 
to  treat  with  the  king  of  the  Goths. 

"  We  are  resolved  to  maintain  the  dignity  of 
Roine,  either  in  peace  or  war,"  said  the  envoys, 
with  a  show  of  pride  and  valor.  "  If  you  will  not 
yield  us  honorable  terms,  you  may  sound  your 
trumpets  and  prepare  to  fight  with  myriads  of  men 
used  to  arms  and  with  the  courage  of  despair." 


THE   DOWNFALL   OP   ROME.  337 

"The  thicker  the  hay,  tho  easier  it  is  mowed," 
answered  Alaric,  with  a  loud  and  insulting  laugh. 

He  then  named  the  terms  on  which  he  would  re> 
treat, — all  the  gold  and  silver  in  the  city;  all  the 
rich  and  precious  movables ;  all  the  slaves  who  were 
of  barbarian  origin. 

"  If  such  are  your  demands,"  asked  the  envoys, 
now  reduced  to  suppliant  tones,  "  what  do  you  intend 
to  leave  us  ?" 

"Your  lives"  said  Alaric,  in  haughty  tones. 

The  envoys  retired,  trembling  with  fear. 

But  Alaric  moderated  his  demands,  and  was 
bought  off  by  the  payment  of  five  thousand  pounds 
of  gold,  thirty  thousand  pounds  of  silver,  four  thou- 
sand robes  of  silk,  three  thousand  pieces  of  scarlet 
cloth,  and  three  thousand  pounds  of  pepper,  then  a 
costly  and  favorite  spice.  The  gates  were  opened, 
the  hungry  multitude  was  fed,  and  the  Gothic  army 
marched  away,  but  it  left  Eome  poor. 

What  followed  is  too  long  to  tell.  Alario  treated 
for  peace  with  the  ministers  of  the  emperor.  But 
he  met  with  such  bad  faith  and  so  many  insults  that 
exasperation  overcame  all  his  desire  for  peace,  and 
once  more  the  army  of  the  Goths  marched  upon 
Rome. 

The  crime  and  folly  of  the  court  of  Honorius  at 
Ravenna  had  at  last  brought  about  the  ruin  of  the 
imperial  city.  The  senate  resolved  on  defence ;  but 
there  were  traitors  within  the  walls.  At  midnight 
the  Salarian  Gate  was  silently  opened,  and  a  chosen 
band  of  barbarians  entered  the  streets.  The  tre- 
mendous sound  of  the  Gothic  trumpet  aroused  the 
II. — f  w  29 


338  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

sleeping  citizens  to  the  fact  that  all  was  lost.  Eleven 
hundred  and  sixty-three  years  after  the  foundation 
of  Borne,  and  eight  hundred  years  after  its  capture 
by  the  Gauls,  it  had  again  become  the  prey  of  bar- 
barians, and  the  imperial  mistress  of  the  world  was 
delivered  to  the  fury  of  the  German  and  Gothic 
hordes. 

Alaric,  while  permitting  his  followers  to  plunder 
at  discretion,  bade  them  to  spare  the  lives  of  the  un- 
resisting ;  but  thousands  of  .Romans  were  slain,  and 
the  forty  thousand  slaves  who  had  joined  his  ranks 
revenged  themselves  on  their  former  masters  with 
pitiless  rage.  Conflagration  added  to  the  horrors, 
and  fire  spread  far  over  the  captured  city.  The 
Goths  held  Eome  only  for  six  days,  but  in  that  time 
depleted  it  frightfully  of  its  wealth.  The  costly 
furniture,  the  massive  plate,  the  robes  of  silk  and 
purple,  were  piled  without  stint  into  their  wagons, 
and  numerous  works  of  art  were  wantonly  de- 
stroyed. 

But  Alaric  and  many  of  his  followers  were  Chris- 
tians, and  the  treasures  of  the  Church  escaped.  A 
Christian  Goth  broke  into  the  dwelling  of  an  aged 
woman,  and  demanded  all  the  gold  and  silver  she 
possessed.  To  his  astonishment,  she  showed  him  a 
hoard  of  massive  plate,  of  the  most  curious  work- 
manship. As  he  looked  at  it  with  wonder  and  de- 
light, she  solemnly  said, — 

"These  are  the  consecrated  vessels  belonging  to 
St.  Peter.  If  you  presume  to  touch  them,  your  con- 
science must  answer  for  the  sacrilege.  For  me,  I 
dare  not  keep  what  I  am  riot  able  to  defend." 


THE   DOWNFALL   OF   ROME.  339 

The  Goth,  struck  with  awe  by  her  words,  sent 
word  to  Alaric  of  what  he  had  found,  and  received 
an  order  that  all  this  consecrated  treasure  should  be 
transported  without  damage  to  St.  Peter's  Church. 
A  remarkable  spectacle,  never  before  seen  in  a  cap- 
tured city,  followed.  From  the  Quirinal  Hill  to  the 
distant  Yatican  marched  a  long  train  of  devout  Goths, 
bearing  on  their  heads  the  sacred  vessels  of  gold 
and  silver,  and  guarded  on  each  side  by  a  detach- 
ment of  their  armed  companions,  while  the  martial 
shouts  of  the  barbarians  mingled  with  the  hymns  of 
devotees.  A  crowd  of  Christians  flocked  from  the 
houses  to  join  the  procession,  and  through  its  shel- 
tering aid  a  multitude  of  fugitives  escaped  to  the 
secure  retreat  of  the  Vatican. 

Not  satisfied  with  plundering  the  city,  the  con- 
querors ended  by  selling  its  citizens,  save  those  who 
could  ransom  themselves,  for  slaves.  Many  of  these 
were  redeemed  by  the  benevolent,  but  as  a  result  of 
the  taking  of  Rome  hosts  of  indigent  fugitives  were 
scattered  through  the  empire,  from  Italy  to  Syria. 

From  this  time  forward  the  Western  Empire  of 
Rome  was  the  prey  of  barbarians.  In  451  the  Huns 
under  Attila  invaded  Gaul,  besieged  Orleans,  and 
were  defeated  at  Chalons  in  the  last  great  victory  of 
Rome.  In  the  following  year  Attila  invaded  Italy, 
and  Rome  was  only  saved  from  the  worst  of  horrors 
by  a  large  ransom.  Three  years  afterwards,  in  455, 
an  army  of  Vandals,  who  had  invaded  Africa,  sailed 
to  Italy,  and  Rome  was  again  taken  and  sacked. 
For  fourteen  days  and  nights  the  pillage  continued, 
and  when  it  ended  Rome  was  stripped  bare  of 


340  HISTORICAL   TALES. 

treasure ;  the  Christian  churches,  which  had  been 
spared  by  the  Goths,  being  mercilessly  plundered  by 
these  heathen  conquerors. 

A  few  3'ears  more  and  the  Western  Empire  of 
Borne  came  to  an  end.  In  the  year  476  or  479, 
Augustulus,  the  last  emperor,  was  forced  to  resign, 
and  Odoacer,  a  barbarian  chief,  assumed  the  title  of 
King  of  Italy.  As  for  the  Eastern  Empire,  it  main- 
tained  a  half-life  for  nearly  a  thousand  years  after, 
Constantinople  being  finally  taken  by  the  Turks,  and 
made  the  capital  of  Turkey,  in  1453. 


THE  END. 


l P "™ "''"'       o QV1        4 


